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Copyright N°_ 

COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 







Aunt Jane’s Nieces 
in The Red Cross 



Aunt Jane’s Nieces 
in The Red Cross 


By 

Edith Van Dyne w { 

Author of “Aunt Jane’s Nieces Series,” 
“Flying Girl Series,” etc. 



The Reilly & Britton Co. 
Chicago 


f V"' 

V s/ 

AUNT 


Copyright, 1915 
by 

The Reilly & Britton Co. 


7765 

jane’s nieces in the red cross 

AUG 12 1915 

© Cl. A 4 1 0 0 4 1 


7**4U*> h ** 


FOREWORD 


I 




This is the story of how three brave American 
girls sacrificed the comforts and luxuries of home 
to go abroad and nurse the wounded soldiers of 
a foreign war. 

I wish I might have depicted more gently the 
scenes in hospital and on battlefield, but it is well 
that my girl readers should realize something of 
the horrors of war, that they may unite with 
heart and soul in earnest appeal for universal, 
lasting Peace and the future abolition of all 
deadly strife. 

Except to locate the scenes of my heroines’ 
labors, no attempt has been made to describe tech- 
nically or historically any phase of the great 
European war. 

The character of Doctor Gys is not greatly 
exaggerated but had its counterpart in real life. 
As for the little Belgian who had no room for 
scruples in his active brain, his story was related 
to me by an American war correspondent who 


Foreword — Continued 


vouched for its truth. The other persons in the 
story are known to those who have followed their 
adventures in other books of the “Aunt Jane’s 
Nieces ” series. 


Edith Van Dyne 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

PAGE 

I 

The Arrival of the Boy 

9 

II 

The Arrival of the Girl . 

• 25 

III 

The Decision of Doctor Gys . 

vj. 

37 

IV 

The Hospital Ship 

. 48 

V 

Nearing the Fray . 

58 

VI 

Little Maurie 

• 75 

VII 

On the Firing Line 

86 

VIII 

The Coward .... 

. 96 

IX 

Courage, or Philosophy? 

108 

X 

The War’s Victims 

. 121 

XI 

Patsy is Defiant 

135 

XII 

The Other Side . 

. 146 

XIII 

Tardy Justice .... 

160 

XIV 

Found at Last 

. 182 

XV 

Dr. Gys Surprises Himself . 

189 

XVI 

Clarette .... 

. 197 

XVII 

Perplexing Problems 

204 

XVIII 

A Question of Loyalty 

. 217 

XIX 

The Capture .... 

225 

XX 

The Dunes .... 

. 244 




















































































m 














































Aunt Jane’s Nieces 
in the Red Cross 


CHAPTER I 

THE ARRIVAL OF THE BOY 

“ What’s the news, Uncle ? ” asked Miss 
Patricia Doyle, as she entered the cosy breakfast 
room of a suite of apartments in Willing Square. 
Even as she spoke she pecked a little kiss on the 
forehead of the chubby man addressed as 
“Uncle” — none other, if you please, than the 
famous and eccentric multi-millionaire known in 
Wall Street as John Merrick — and sat down to 
pour the coffee. 

There was energy in her method of doing this 
simple duty, an indication of suppressed vitality 
that conveyed the idea that here was a girl ac- 
customed to action. And she fitted well into the 
homely scene : short and somewhat “ squatty ” of 
form, red-haired, freckle-faced and pug-nosed. 
9 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

Wholesome rather than beautiful was Patsy 
Doyle, but if you caught a glimpse of her dancing 
blue eyes you straightway forgot her lesser 
charms. 

Quite different was the girl who entered the 
room a few minutes later. Hers was a dark 
olive complexion, face of exquisite contour, great 
brown eyes with a wealth of hair to match them 
and the flush of a rose in her rounded cheeks. 
The poise of her girlish figure was gracious and 
dignified as the bearing of a queen. 

“ Morning, Cousin Beth,” said Patsy cheerily. 

“ Good morning, my dear,” and then, with a 
trace of anxiety in her tone : “ What is the news, 
Uncle John? ” 

The little man had ignored Patsy’s first ques- 
tion, but now he answered absently, his eyes still 
fixed upon the newspaper : 

“ Why, they’re going to build another huge 
skyscraper on Broadway, at Eleventh, and I see 
the political pot is beginning to bubble all through 
the Bronx, although — ” 

“ Stuff and nonsense, Uncle ! ” exclaimed 
Patsy. “ Beth asked for news, not for gossip.” 


io 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ The news of the war, Uncle John/’ added 
Beth, buttering her toast. 

“ Oh ; the war, of course,” he said, turning 
over the page of the morning paper. “ It ought 
to be the Allies’ day, for the Germans won yes- 
terday. No — by cracky, Beth — the Germans 
triumph again ; they’ve captured Maubeuge. 
What do you think of that ? ” 

Patsy gave a little laugh. 

“ Not knowing where Maubeuge is,” she re- 
marked, “ my only thought is that something is 
wrong with the London press bureau. Perhaps 
the cables got crossed — or short circuited or 
something. They don’t usually allow the Ger- 
mans to win two days in succession.” 

“ Don’t interrupt, please,” said Beth, earnestly. 
“ This is too important a matter to be treated 
lightly. Read us the article, Uncle. I was afraid 
Maubeuge would be taken.” 

Patsy accepted her cousin’s rebuke with her 
accustomed good nature. Indeed, she listened as 
intently as Beth to the thrilling account of the 
destruction of Maubeuge, and her blue eyes be- 
came quite as serious as the brown ones of her 


II 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

cousin when the tale of dead and wounded was 
recounted. 

“ Isn’t it dreadful ! ” cried Beth, clasping her 
hands together impulsively. 

“ Yes,” nodded her uncle, “ the horror of it 
destroys the interest we naturally feel in any 
manly struggle for supremacy.” 

“ This great war is no manly struggle,” ob- 
served Patsy with a toss of her head. “ It is 
merely wholesale murder by a band of selfish 
diplomats.” 

“ Tut-tut! ” warned Mr. Merrick; “ we Amer- 
icans are supposed to be neutral, my dear. We 
must not criticize.” 

“ That does not prevent our sympathizing with 
the innocent sufferers, however,” said Beth 
quietly. “ My heart goes out, Uncle, to those 
poor victims of the war’s cruelty, the wounded 
and dying. I wish I could do something to help 
them ! ” 

Uncle John moved uneasily in his chair. Then 
he laid down his paper and applied himself to his 
breakfast. But his usual merry expression had 
faded into one of thoughtfulness. 


12 


IN THE RED CROSS 


u The wounded haunt me by day and night,” 
went on Beth. " There are thousands upon thou- 
sands of them, left to suffer terrible pain — per- 
haps to die — on the spot where they fell, and 
each one is dear to some poor woman who is ig- 
norant of her loved one’s fate and can do nothing 
but moan and pray at home.” 

“ That’s the hard part of it,” said Patsy, her 
cousin. “ I think the mothers and wives and 
sweethearts are as much to be pitied as the fallen 
soldiers. The men know what has happened, but 
the women don’t. It isn’t so bad when they’re 
killed outright ; the family gets a medal to indicate 
that their hero has died for his country. But 
the wounded are lost sight of and must suffer in 
silence, with no loving hands to soothe their 
agony.” 

“ My dears! ” pleaded Uncle John, plaintively, 
“ why do you insist upon flavoring our breakfast 
with these horrors ? I — I — there ! take it 
away ; I can’t eat.” 

The conversation halted abruptly. The girls 
were likewise unnerved by the mental pictures 
evolved by their remarks and it was now too late 
13 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

to restore cheerfulness to the morning meal. 
They sat in pensive silence for a while and were 
glad when Mr. Merrick pushed back his chair 
and rose from the table. 

As Beth and Patsy followed their uncle into 
the cosy library where he was accustomed to 
smoke his morning cigar, the little man remarked : 

“ Let’s see ; this is the seventh of September.” 

“ Quite right, Uncle,” said Patsy. 

“ Isn’t this the day Maud Stanton is due to 
arrive ? ” 

“ No,” replied Beth; “ she will come to-morrow 
morning. It’s a good four days’ trip from 
California to New York, you know.” 

“ I wonder why she is coming here at this time 
of year,” said Patsy reflectively, “ and I wonder 
if her Aunt Jane or her sister Flo are with her.” 

“ She did not mention them in her telegram,” 
answered Beth. “ All she said was to expect her 
Wednesday morning. It seems quite mysterious, 
that telegram, for I had no idea Maud thought 
of coming East.” 

“Well, we will know all about it when she 
arrives,” observed Uncle John. “ I will be glad 
14 


IN THE RED CROSS 

to see Maud again, for she is one of my especial 
favorites.” 

“She’s a very dear girl!” exclaimed Patsy, 
with emphasis. “ It will be simply glorious 
to — ” 

The doorbell rang sharply. There was a 
moment’s questioning pause, for it was too early 
for visitors. The pattering feet of the little maid, 
Mary, approached the door and next moment a 
boyish voice demanded : 

“ Is Mr. Merrick at home, or the young ladies, 
or — ” 

“ Why, it’s Ajo! ” shouted Patsy, springing to 
her feet and making a dive for the hallway. 

“Jones?” said Mr. Merrick, looking in- 
credulous. 

“ It must be,” declared Beth, for now Patsy’s 
voice was blended with that of the boy in a rapid 
interchange of question and answer. Then in 
she came, dragging him joyously by the arm. 

“ This is certainly a surprise ! ” said Mr. Mer- 
rick, shaking the tall, slender youth by the hand 
with evident pleasure. 

“When did you get to town?” asked Beth, 
15 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

greeting the boy cordially. “ And why didn’t you 
let us know you were on the way from far-off 
Los Angeles ? ” 

“ Well,” said Jones, seating himself facing 
them and softly rubbing his lean hands together 
to indicate his satisfaction at this warm reception, 
“ it’s a long, long story and I may as well tell it 
methodically or you’ll never appreciate the adven- 
turous spirit that led me again to New York — 
the one place I heartily detest.” 

“Oh, Ajo!” protested Patsy. “Is this the 
way to retain the friendship of New Yorkers? ” 

“ Isn’t honesty appreciated here ? ” he wanted 
to know. 

“ Go ahead with your story,” said Uncle John. 
“ We left you some months ago at the harbor of 
Los Angeles, wondering what you were going to 
do with that big ship of yours that lay anchored 
in the Pacific. If I remember aright, you were 
considering whether you dared board it to return 
to that mysterious island home of yours at — 
at — ” 

“ Sangoa,” said Patsy. 

“ Thank you for giving me a starting-point,” 
16 


IN THE RED CROSS 


returned the boy, with a smile. “ You may re- 
member that when I landed in your country from 
Sangoa I was a miserable invalid. The voyage 
had ruined my stomach and wrecked my con- 
stitution. I crossed the continent to New York 
and consulted the best specialists — and they 
nearly put an end to me. I returned to the Pacific 
coast to die as near home as possible, and — and 
there I met you.” 

“ And Patsy saved your life,” added Beth. 

“ She did. First, however, Maud Stanton 
saved me from drowning. Then Patsy Doyle 
doctored me and made me well and strong. And 
now — ” 

“ And now you look like a modem Hercules,” 
asserted Patsy, gazing with some pride at the 
bronzed cheeks and clear eyes of the former 
invalid and ignoring his slight proportions. 
“ Whatever have you been doing with yourself 
since then ? ” 

“ Taking a sea voyage,” he affirmed. 

“ Really?” 

“ An absolute fact. For months I dared not 
board the Arabella, my sea yacht, for fear of a 
1 7 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

return of my old malady; but after you deserted 
me and came to this — this artificial, dreary, 
bewildering — ” 

“ Never mind insulting my birthplace, sir ! ” 

“Oh! were you born here, Patsy? Then I’ll 
give the town credit. So, after you deserted me 
at Los Angeles — ” 

“ You still had Mrs. Montrose and her nieces, 
Alaud and Flo Stanton.” 

“ I know, and I love them all. But they be- 
came so tremendously busy that I scarcely saw 
them, and finally I began to feel lonely. Those 
Stanton girls are chock full of business energy 
and they hadn’t the time to devote to me that 
you people did. So I stood on the shore and 
looked at the Arabella until I mustered up cour- 
age to go aboard. Surviving that, I made Cap- 
tain Carg steam slowly along the coast for a 
few miles. Nothing dreadful happened. So I 
made a day’s voyage, and still ate my three 
squares a day. That was encouraging.” 

“ I knew all the time it wasn’t the voyage that 
wrecked your stomach,” said Patsy confidently. 

“ What was it, then? ” 

18 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Ptomaine poisoning, or something like that.” 

“ Well, anyhow, I found I could stand ocean 
travel again, so I determined on a voyage. The 
Panama Canal was just opened and I passed 
through it, came up the Atlantic coast, and — the 
Arabella is at this moment safely anchored in 
the North River ! ” 

“ And how do you feel? ” inquired Uncle John. 

“ Glorious — magnificent ! The trip has sealed 
my recovery for good.” 

“ But why didn’t you go home, to your Island 
of Sangoa?” asked Beth. 

He looked at her reproachfully. 

“ Y ou were not there, Beth ; nor was Patsy, 
or Uncle John. On the other hand, there is no 
one in Sangoa who cares a rap whether I come 
home or not. I’m the last of the Joneses of 
Sangoa, and while it is still my island and the 
entire population is in my employ, the life there 
flows on just as smoothly without me as if I 
were present.” 

“ But don’t they need the ship — the Ara- 
bella? ” questioned Beth. 

“ Not now. I sent a cargo of supplies by Cap- 

19 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

tain Carg when he made his last voyage to the 
island, and there will not be enough pearls found 
in the fisheries for four or five months to come to 
warrant my shipping them to market. Even then, 
they would keep. So I’m a free lance at present 
and I had an idea that if I once managed to get 
the boat around here you folks might find a use 
for it.” 

“ In what way ? ” inquired Patsy, with interest. 

“ We might all make a trip to Barbadoes, Ber- 
muda and Cuba. Brazil is said to be an interest- 
ing country. I’d prefer Europe, were it not for 
the war.” 

“ Oh, A jo, isn’t this war terrible? ” 

“ No other word expresses it. Yet it all seems 
like a fairy tale to me, for I’ve never been in any 
other country than the United States since I made 
my first voyage here from Sangoa — the island 
where my eyes first opened to the world.” 

“ It isn’t a fairy tale,” said Beth with a shud- 
der. “ It’s more like a horrible nightmare.” 

“ I can’t bear to read about it any more,” he 
returned, musingly. “ In fact, I’ve only been able 
to catch rumors of the progress of the war in the 


20 


IN THE RED CROSS 

various ports at which I’ve touched, and I came 
right here from my ship. But I’ve no sympathy 
with either side. The whole thing annoys me, 
somehow — the utter uselessness and folly of it 
all.” 

“ Maubeuge has fallen,” said Beth, and went 
on to give him the latest tidings. Finding that 
the war was the absorbing topic in this little 
household, the boy developed new interest in it 
and the morning passed quickly away. 

Jones stayed to lunch and then Mr. Merrick’s 
automobile took them all to the river to visit the 
beautiful yacht Arabella, which was already, they 
found, attracting a good deal of attention in the 
harbor, where beautiful yachts are no rarity. 

The Arabella was intended by her builders for 
deep sea transit and as Patsy admiringly declared, 
“ looked like a baby liner.” While she was yacht- 
built in all her lines and fittings, she was far from 
being merely a pleasure craft, but had been de- 
signed by the elder Jones, the boy’s father, to 
afford communication between the Island of 
Sangoa, in the lower South Seas, and the con- 
tinent of America. 


21 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

Sangoa is noted for its remarkable pearl fisher- 
ies, which were now owned and controlled entirely 
by this youth ; but his father, an experienced man 
of affairs, had so thoroughly established the busi- 
ness of production and sale that little remained 
for his only son and heir to do, more than to 
invest the profits that steadily accrued and to care 
for the great fortune left him. Whether he was 
doing this wisely or not no one — not even his 
closest friends — could tell. But he was frank 
and friendly about everything else. 

They went aboard the Arabella and were re- 
ceived by that grim and grizzled old salt, Captain 
Carg, with the same wooden indifference he al- 
ways exhibited. But Patsy detected a slight 
twinkle in the shrewd gray eyes that made her 
feel they were welcome. Carg, a seaman of vast 
experience, was wholly devoted to his young 
master. Indeed, the girls suspected that young 
Jones was a veritable autocrat in his island, as 
well as aboard his ship. Everyone of the San- 
goans seemed to accept his dictation, however 
imperative it might be, as a matter of course, and 
the gray old captain — who had seen much of 


22 


IN THE RED CROSS 

the world — was not the least subservient to his 
young master. 

On the other hand, Jones was a gentle and con- 
siderate autocrat, unconsciously imitating his 
lately deceased father in his kindly interest in 
the welfare of all his dependents. These had 
formerly been free-born Americans, for when the 
Island of Sangoa was purchased it had no 
inhabitants. 

This fortunate — or perhaps unfortunate — 
youth had never been blessed with a given name, 
more than the simple initial “A.” The failure of 
his mother and father to agree upon a baptismal 
name for their only child had resulted in a dead- 
lock; and, as the family claimed a direct descent 
from the famous John Paul Jones, the proud 
father declared that to be "a Jones” was sufficient 
honor for any boy; hence he should be known 
merely as “A. Jones.” The mother called her 
child by the usual endearing pet names until her 
death, after which the islanders dubbed the mas- 
ter’s son — then toddling around in his first 
trousers — “ Ajo,” and the name had stuck to 
him ever since for want of a better one. 


23 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

With the Bohemian indifference to household 
routine so characteristic of New Yorkers, the 
party decided to dine at a down-town restaurant 
before returning to Willing Square, and it was 
during this entertainment that young Jones first 
learned of the expected arrival of Maud Stanton 
on the following morning. But he was no wiser 
than the others as to what mission could have 
brought the girl to New York so suddenly that 
a telegram was required to announce her coming. 

“ You see, I left Los Angeles weeks ago,” the 
boy explained, “ and at that time Mrs. Montrose 
and her nieces were busy as bees and much too 
occupied to pay attention to a drone like me. 
There was no hint then of their coming East, but 
of course many things may have happened in the 
meantime.” 

The young fellow was so congenial a compan- 
ion and the girls were so well aware of his lone- 
liness, through lack of acquaintances, that they 
carried him home with them to spend the evening. 
When he finally left them, at a late hour, it was 
with the promise to be at the station next morn- 
ing to meet Maud Stanton on her arrival. 

24 


CHAPTER II 


THE ARRIVAL OF THE GIRL 

A sweet-faced girl, very attractive but with a 
sad and anxious expression, descended from the 
Pullman and brightened as she found her friends 
standing with outstretched arms to greet her. 

“ Oh, Maud ! ” cried Patsy, usurping the first 
hug, “ how glad I am to see you again ! ” 

Beth looked in Maud Stanton’s face and for- 
bore to speak as she embraced her friend. Then 
Jones shook both hands of the new arrival and 
Uncle John kissed her with the same tenderness 
he showed his own nieces. 

This reception seemed to cheer Maud Stanton 
immensely. She even smiled during the drive to 
Willing Square — a winning, gracious smile that 
would have caused her to be instantly recognized 
in almost any community of our vast country; 
for this beautiful young girl was a famous 
motion picture actress, possessing qualities that 
25 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

had endeared her to every patron of the better 
class photo-dramas. 

At first she had been forced to adopt this occu- 
pation by the stern necessity of earning a liveli- 
hood, and under the careful guidance of her aunt 

— Mrs. Jane Montrose, a widow who had at one 
time been a favorite in New York social circles 

— Maud and her sister Florence had applied 
themselves so intelligently to their art that their 
compensation had become liberal enough to enable 
them to save a modest competence. 

One cause of surprise at Maud’s sudden jour- 
ney east was the fact that her services were in 
eager demand by the managers of the best pro- 
ducing companies on the Pacific Coast, where 
nearly all the American pictures are now made. 
Another cause for surprise was that she came 
alone, leaving her Aunt Jane and her sister Flo — 
usually her inseparable companion — in Los 
Angeles. 

But they did not question her until the cosy 
home at Willing Square was reached, luncheon 
served and Maud installed in the “ Guest Room.” 
Then the three girls had “ a good, long talk ” and 
26 


IN THE RED CROSS 

presently came trooping into the library to en- 
lighten Uncle John and Ajo. 

“ Oh, Uncle ! What do you think ? ” cried 
Patsy. “ Maud is going to the war ! ” 

“ The war ! ” echoed Mr. Merrick in a be- 
wildered voice. “ What on earth can — ” 

“ She is going to be a nurse,” explained Beth, 
a soft glow of enthusiasm mantling her pretty 
face. “ Isn’t it splendid, Uncle ! ” 

“ H-m,” said Uncle John, regarding the girl 
with wonder. “ It is certainly a — a — surpris- 
ing venture.” 

“ But — see here, Maud — it’s mighty dan- 
gerous,” protested young Jones. “ It’s a tre- 
mendous undertaking, and — what can one girl 
do in the midst of all those horrors? ” 

Maud seated herself quietly between them. 
Her face was grave and thoughtful. 

“ I have had to answer many such arguments 
before now, as you may suspect,” she began in 
even tones, “ but the fact that I am here, well on 
my journey, is proof that I have convinced my 
aunt, my sister and all my western friends that I 
am at least determined on my mission, whether 
27 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

it be wise or foolish. I do not think I shall incur 
danger by caring for the wounded ; the Red Cross 
is highly respected everywhere, these days.” 

“ The Red Cross? ” quoth Uncle John. 

“Yes; I shall wear the Red Cross,” she con- 
tinued. “You know that I am a trained nurse; 
it was part of my education before — before — ” 

“ I had not known that until now,” said Mr. 
Merrick, “ but I am glad you have had that train- 
ing. Beth began a course at the school here, but I 
took her away to Europe before she graduated. 
However, I wish more girls could be trained for 
nursing, as it is a more useful and admirable 
accomplishment than most of them now acquire.” 

“ Fox-Trots and Bunny-Hugs, for instance,” 
said Patricia with fine disdain. 

“ Patsy is a splendid nurse,” declared Ajo, 
with a grateful look toward that chubby miss. 

“ But untrained,” she answered laughingly. 
“ It was just common sense that enabled me to 
cure your malady, Ajo. I couldn’t bandage a cut 
or a bullet wound to save me.” 

“ Fortunately,” said Maud, “ I have a diploma 
which will gain for me the endorsement of the 
28 


IN THE RED CROSS 


American Red Cross Society. I am counting on 
that to enable me to get an appointment at the 
seat of war, where I can be of most use.” 

“ Where will you go? ” asked the boy. “ To 
Germany, Austria, Russia, Belgium, or — ” 

“ I shall go to France,” she replied. “ I speak 
French, but understand little of German, although 
once I studied the language.” 

“ Are you fully resolved upon this course, 
Maud? ” asked Mr. Merrick in a tone of regret. 

“ Fully decided, sir. I am going to Washing- 
ton to-morrow, to get my credentials, and then I 
shall take the first steamer to Europe.” 

There was no use arguing with Maud Stanton 
when she assumed that tone. It was neither ob- 
stinate nor defiant, yet it conveyed a quiet resolve 
that was unanswerable. 

For a time they sat in silence, musing on the 
many phases of this curious project; then Beth 
came to Mr. Merrick’s side and asked pleadingly : 

“ May I go with her, Uncle? ” 

“ Great Scott ! ” he exclaimed, with a nervous 
jump. " You , Beth? ” 

“ Yes, Uncle. I so long to be of help to those 
29 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 
poor fellows who are being so cruelly sacrificed; 
and I know I can soothe much suffering, if I have 
the opportunity.” 

He stared at her, not knowing what to reply. 
This quaint little man was so erratic himself, in 
his sudden resolves and eccentric actions, that he 
could scarcely quarrel with his niece for imitating 
an example he had frequently set. Still, he was 
shrewd enough to comprehend the reckless daring 
of the proposition. 

“ Two unprotected girls in the midst of war 
and carnage, surrounded by foreigners, inspired 
to noble sacrifice through ignorance and inexperi- 
ence, and hardly old enough to travel alone from 
Hoboken to Brooklyn! Why, the thing’s ab- 
surd,” he said. 

“ Quite impractical,” added Ajo, nodding 
wisely. “ You’re both too pretty, my dears, to 
undertake such an adventure. Why, the wounded 
men would all fall in love with their nurses and 
follow you back to America in a flock; and that 
might put a stop to the war for lack of men to 
fight it.” 

“ Don’t be silly, Ajo,” said Patsy, severely. 
30 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Eve decided to go with Maud and Beth, and 
you know very well that the sight of my freckled 
face would certainly chill any romance that might 
arise.” 

“ That’s nonsense, Patsy ! ” 

“Then you consider me beautiful, Uncle 
John? ” 

“ I mean it’s nonsense about your going with 
Maud and Beth. I won’t allow it.” 

“Oh, Uncle! You know I can twine you 
around my little finger, if I choose. So don’t, 
for goodness’ sake, start a rumpus by trying to 
set your will against mine.” 

“ Then side with me, dear. I’m quite right, I 
assure you.” 

“ You’re always right, Nunkie, dear,” she 
cried, giving him a resounding smack of a kiss 
on his chubby cheek as she sat on the arm of his 
chair, “ but I’m going with the girls, just the 
same, and you may as well make up your mind 
to it.” 

Uncle John coughed. He left his chair and 
trotted up and down the room a moment. Then 
he carefully adjusted his spectacles, took a long 
3i 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

look at Patsy’s face, and heaved a deep sigh of 
resignation. 

“ Thank goodness, that’s settled,” said Patsy 
cheerfully. 

Uncle John turned to the boy, saying dismally : 

“ I’ve done everything in my power for these 
girls, and now they defy me. They’ve declared 
a thousand times they love me, and yet they’d 
trot off to bandage a lot of unknown foreigners 
and leave me alone to worry my heart out.” 

“Why don’t you go along?” asked Jones. 
“ I’m going.” 

“ You!” 

“Of course. I’ve a suspicion our girls have 
the right instinct, sir — the tender, womanly in- 
stinct that makes us love them. At any rate, I’m 
going to stand by them. It strikes me as the 
noblest and grandest idea a girl ever conceived, 
and if anything could draw me closer to these 
three young ladies, who had me pretty well 
snared before, it is this very proposition.” 

“ I don’t see why,” muttered Uncle John, 
wavering. 

“ I’ll tell you why, sir. For themselves, they 
32 


IN THE RED CROSS 


have all the good things of life at their command. 
They could bask in luxury to the end of their 
days, if they so desired. Yet their wonderful 
womanly sympathy goes out to the helpless and 
suffering — the victims of the cruellest war the 
world has ever known — and they promptly 
propose to sacrifice their ease and brave whatever 
dangers may befall, that they may relieve to 
some extent the pain and agony of those wounded 
and dying fellow creatures.” 

“ Foreigners,” said Uncle John weakly. 

“ Human beings,” said the boy. 

Patsy marched over to Ajo and gave him a 
sturdy whack upon the back that nearly knocked 
him over. 

“ The spirit of John Paul Jones still goes 
marching on ! ” she cried. “ My boy, you’re the 
right stuff, and I’m glad I doctored you.” 

He smiled, looking from one to another of the 
three girls questioningly. 

“ Then I’m to go along? ” he asked. 

“ We shall be grateful,” answered Maud, after 
a moment’s hesitation. “ This is all very sudden 
to me, for I had planned to go alone.” 

33 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ That wouldn’t do at all,” asserted Uncle John 
briskly. “ I’m astonished and — and grieved * — 
that my nieces should want to go with you, but 
perhaps the trip will prove interesting. Tell me 
what steamer you want to catch, Maud, and I’ll 
reserve rooms for our entire party.” 

“ No,” said Jones, “ don’t do it, sir.” 

u Why not?” 

“ There’s the Arabella. Let’s use her.” 

“ To cross the ocean? ” 

“ She has done that before. It will assist our 
enterprise, I’m sure, to have our own boat. These 
are troublous times on the high seas.” 

Patsy clapped her hands gleefully. 

“ That’s it ; a hospital ship ! ” she exclaimed. 

They regarded her with various expressions: 
startled, doubtful, admiring, approving. Pres- 
ently, with added thought on the matter, the ap- 
proval became unanimous. 

“ It’s an amazing suggestion,” said Maud, her 
eyes sparkling. 

“ Think how greatly it will extend our useful- 
ness,” said Beth. 

Uncle John was again trotting up and down 
34 


IN THE RED CROSS 

the room, this time in a state of barely repressed 
excitement. 

“ The very thing ! ” he cried. “ Clever, prac- 
tical, and — eh — eh — * tremendously interesting. 
Now, then, listen carefully — all of you! It’s up 
to you, Jones, to accompany Maud on the night 
express to Washington. Get the Red Cross 
Society to back our scheme and supply us with 
proper credentials. The Arabella must be rated 
as a hospital ship and our party endorsed as a 
distinct private branch of the Red Cross — what 
they call a * unit.’ I’ll give you a letter to our 
senator and he will look after our passports and 
all necessary papers. I — I helped elect him, you 
know. And while you’re gone it shall be my 
business to fit the ship with all the supplies we 
shall need to promote our mission of mercy.” 

“ I’ll share the expense,” proposed the boy. 

“ No, you won’t. You’ve done enough in fur- 
nishing the ship and crew. I’ll attend to the 
rest.” 

“ And Beth and I will be Uncle John’s assist- 
ants,” said Patsy. “ We shall want heaps of lint 
and bandages, drugs and liniments and — ” 

35 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“And, above all, a doctor,” advised Ajo. 
“ One of the mates on my yacht, Kelsey by name, 
is a half-way physician, having studied medicine 
in his youth and practiced it on the crew for the 
last dozen years; but what we really need on a 
hospital ship is a bang-up surgeon.” 

“ This promises to become an expensive under- 
taking,” remarked Maud, with a sigh. “ Perhaps 
it will be better to let me go alone, as I originally 
expected to do. But, if we take along the hospital 
ship, do not be extravagant, Mr. Merrick, in 
equipping it. I feel that I have been the inno- 
cent cause of drawing you all into this venture 
and I do not want it to prove a hardship to my 
friends.” 

“ All right, Maud,” returned Uncle John, with 
a cheerful grin, “ I’ll try to economize, now that 
you’ve warned me.” 

Ajo smiled and Patsy Doyle laughed outright. 
They knew it would not inconvenience the little 
rich man, in the slightest degree, to fit out a 
dozen hospital ships. 


36 


CHAPTER III 


THE DECISION OF DOCTOR GYS 

Uncle John was up bright and early next morn- 
ing, and directly after breakfast he called upon 
his old friend and physician, Dr. Barlow. After 
explaining the undertaking on which he had em- 
barked, Mr. Merrick added: 

“ You see, we need a surgeon with us; a clever, 
keen chap who understands his business thor- 
oughly, a sawbones with all the modern scientific 
discoveries saturating him to his finger-tips. Tell 
me where to get him.” 

Dr. Barlow, recovering somewhat from his 
astonishment, smiled deprecatingly. 

“ The sort of man you describe,” said he, 
“ would cost you a fortune, for you would oblige 
him to abandon a large and lucrative practice in 
order to accompany you. I doubt, indeed, if any 
price would tempt him to abandon his patients.” 

“ Isn't there some young fellow with these 
requirements ? ” 


37 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ Mr. Merrick, you need a physician and sur- 
geon combined. Wounds lead to fever and other 
serious ailments, which need skillful handling. 
You might secure a young man, fresh from his 
clinics, who would prove a good surgeon, but to 
master the science of medicine, experience and 
long practice are absolutely necessary.” 

“ We’ve got a half-way medicine man on the 
ship now — a fellow who has doctored the crew 
for years and kept ’em pretty healthy. So I guess 
a surgeon will about fill our bill.” 

“ H-m, I know these ship’s doctors, Mr. Mer- 
rick, and I wouldn’t care to have you and your 
nieces trust your lives to one, in case you become 
ill. Believe me, a good physician is as necessary 
to you as a good surgeon. Do you know that 
disease will kill as many of those soldiers as 
bullets ? ” 

“ No.” 

“ It is true ; else the history of wars has taught 
us nothing. We haven’t heard much of plagues 
and epidemics yet, in the carefully censored re- 
ports from London, but it won’t be long before 
disease will devastate whole armies.” 


IN THE RED CROSS 

Unde John frowned. The thing was growing 
complicated. 

“ Do you consider this a wild goose chase. 
Doctor ? ” he asked. 

“ Not with your fortune, your girls and your 
fine ship to back it. I think Miss Stanton's idea 
of venturing abroad unattended, to nurse the 
wounded, was Quixotic in the extreme. Some 
American women are doing it, I know, but I don't 
approve of it. On the other hand, your present 
plan is worthy of admiration and applause, for 
it is eminently practical if properly handled.” 

Dr. Barlow drummed upon the table with his 
fingers, musingly. Then he looked up. 

“ I wonder,” said he, “ if Gys would go. If 
you could win him over, he would fill the bill.” 

“ Who is Gys? ” inquired Uncle John. 

“ An eccentric ; a character. But clever and 
competent. He has just returned from Yucatan, 
where he accompanied an expedition of explora- 
tion sent out by the Geographical Society — and, 
by the way, nearly lost his life in the venture. 
Before that, he made a trip to the frozen North 
with a rescue party. Between times, he works 
39 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

in the hospitals, or acts as consulting surgeon 
with men of greater fame than he has won; but 
Gys is a rolling stone, erratic and whimsical, and 
with all his talent can never settle down to a 
steady practice.” 

“ Seems like the very man I want,” said Uncle 
John, much interested. “ Where can I find 
him?” 

“ I’ve no idea. But I’ll call up Collins and 
inquire.” 

He took up the telephone receiver and got 
his number. 

“ Collins? Say, I’m anxious to find Gys. 
Have you any idea — Eh ? Sitting with you 
now? How lucky. Ask him if he will come 
to my office at once; it’s important.” 

Uncle John’s face was beaming with satisfac- 
tion. The doctor waited, the receiver at his ear. 

“ What’s that, Collins ? . He won’t 

come? . . . Why not? . . . Absurd! 

. I’ve a fine proposition for him. . . . 

Eh ? He isn’t interested in propositions ? What 
in thunder is he interested in ? . . , Pshaw ! 

Hold the phone a minute.” 

40 


IN THE RED CROSS 


Turning to Mr. Merrick, he said : 

“ Gys wants to go on a fishing trip. He plans 
to start to-night for the Maine woods. But Tve 
an idea if you could get him face to face you 
might convince him.” 

“ See if he'll stay where he is till I can get 
there.” 

The doctor turned to the telephone and asked 
the question. There was a long pause. Gys 
wanted to know who it was that proposed to 
visit him. John Merrick, the retired millionaire? 
All right; Gys would wait in Collins’ office for 
twenty minutes. 

Uncle John lost no time in rushing to his 
motor car, where he ordered the driver to hasten 
to the address Dr. Barlow had given him. 

The offices of Dr. Collins were impressive. 
Mr. Merrick entered a luxurious reception room 
and gave his name to a businesslike young woman 
who advanced to meet him. He had called to 
see Dr. Gys. 

The young woman smothered a smile that 
crept to her lips, and led Uncle John through an 
examination room and an operating room — both 
41 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

vacant just now — and so into a laboratory that 
was calculated to give a well person the shivers. 
Here was but one individual, a man in his shirt- 
sleeves who was smoking a corncob pipe and 
bending over a test tube. 

Uncle John coughed to announce his presence, 
for the woman had slipped away as she closed 
the door. The man’s back was turned partially 
toward his visitor. He did not alter his position 
as he said: 

“ Sit down. There’s a chair in the southwest 
corner.” 

Uncle John found the chair. He waited 
patiently a few moments and then his choler 
began to rise. 

“If you’re in such a blamed hurry to go fish- 
ing, why don’t you get rid of me now?” he 
asked. 

The shoulders shook gently and there was a 
chuckling laugh. The man laid down his test 
tube and swung around on his stool. 

For a moment Mr. Merrick recoiled. The face 
was seared with livid scars, the nose crushed 
to one side, the mouth crooked and set in a 
42 


IN THE RED CROSS 


sneering grin. One eye was nearly closed and 
the other round and wide open. A more for- 
bidding and ghastly countenance Mr. Merrick 
had never beheld and in his surprise he muttered 
a low exclamation. 

“ Exactly,” said Gys, his voice quiet and pleas- 
ant. “ I don’t blame you and I’m not offended. 
Do you wonder I hesitate to meet strangers ? ” 

“I — I was not — prepared,” stammered 
Uncle John. 

“ That was Barlow’s fault. He knows me 
and should have told you. And now I’ll tell you 
why I consented to see you. No! never mind 
your own proposition, whatever it is. Listen to 
mine first. I want to go fishing, and I haven’t 
the money. None of my brother physicians will 
lend me another sou, for I owe them all. You 
are John Merrick, to whom money is of little 
consequence. May I venture to ask you for an 
advance of a couple of hundred for a few weeks ? 
When I return I’ll take up your proposition, 
whatever it may be, and recompense you in serv- 
ices.” 

He refilled and relighted the corncob while 
43 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

Mr. Merrick stared at him in thoughtful silence. 
As a matter of fact, Uncle John was pleased with 
the fellow. A whimsical, irrational, unconven- 
tional appeal of this sort went straight to his 
heart, for the queer little man hated the common- 
place most cordially. 

“ I’ll give you the money on one condition,” 
he said. 

“ I object to the condition,” said Gys firmly. 
“ Conditions are dangerous.” 

“My proposition,” went on Uncle John, 
“ won’t wait for weeks. When you hear it, if you 
are not anxious to take it up, I don’t want you. 
Indeed, I’m not sure I want you, anyhow.” 

“ Ah ; you’re frightened by my features. Most 
people with propositions are. I’m an unlucky 
dog, sir. They say it’s good luck to touch a 
hunchback; to touch me is the reverse. Way up 
North in a frozen sea a poor fellow went over- 
board. I didn’t get him and he drowned; but I 
got caught between two cakes of floating ice that 
jammed my nose out of its former perfect con- 
tour. In Yucatan I tumbled into a hedge of 
poisoned cactus and had to operate on myself — 
44 


IN THE RED CROSS 


quickly, too — to save my life. Wild with pain, 
I slashed my face to get the poisoned tips of 
thorn out of the flesh. Parts of my body are like 
my face, but fortunately I can cover them. It 
was bad surgery. On another I could have oper- 
ated without leaving a scar, but I was frantic 
with pain. Don’t stare at that big eye, sir; it’s 
glass. I lost that optic in Pernambuco and 
couldn’t find a glass substitute to fit my face. 
Indeed, this was the only one in town, made for 
a fat Spanish lady who turned it down because 
it was not exactly the right color.” 

“You certainly have been — eh — unfortu- 
nate,” murmured Uncle John. 

“ See here,” said Gys, taking a leather book 
from an inside pocket of the coat that hung on 
a peg beside him, and proceeding to open it. 
“ Here is a photograph of me, taken before I 
embarked upon my adventures.” 

Uncle John put on his glasses and examined 
the photograph curiously. It was a fine face, 
clean-cut, manly and expressive. The eyes were 
especially frank and winning. 

“ How old were you then ? ” he asked. 

45 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ Twenty-four.” 

“ And now?” 

“ Thirty-eight. A good deal happened in that 
fourteen years, as you may guess. And now,” 
reaching for the photograph and putting it care- 
fully back in the book, “ state your proposition 
and I’ll listen to it, because you have listened so 
patiently to me.” 

Mr. Merrick in simple words explained the 
plan to take a hospital ship to Europe, relating 
the incidents that led up to the enterprise and 
urging the need of prompt action. His voice 
dwelt tenderly on his girls and the loyal support 
of young Jones. 

Dr. Gys smoked and listened silently. Then 
he picked up the telephone and called a number. 

“ Tell Hawkins I’ve abandoned that fishing 
trip,” he said. “ I’ve got another job.” Then 
he faced Mr. Merrick. His smile was not pretty, 
but it was a smile. 

“ That’s my answer, sir.” 

“ But we haven’t talked salary yet.” 

“ Bother the salary. I’m not mercenary.” 

“ And I’m not sure — ” 

46 


IN THE RED CROSS 

“ Yes, you are. I’m going with you. Do you 
know why ? ” 

“It’s a novel project, very appealing from a 
humanitarian standpoint and — ” 

“ I hadn’t thought of that. I’m going because 
you’re headed for the biggest war the world has 
ever known ; because I foresee danger ahead, for 
all of us; but mainly because — ” 

“ Well?” 

“ Because I’m a coward • — a natural born 
coward — and I can have a lot of fun forcing 
myself to face the shell and shrapnel. That’s 
the truth; I’m not a liar. And for a long time 
I’ve been wondering — -wondering — ” His 
voice died away in a murmur. 

“ Well, sir?” 

Dr. Gys roused himself. 

“ Oh; do you want a full confession? For a 
long time, then, I’ve been wondering what’s the 
easiest way for a man to die. No, I’m not mor- 
bid. I’m simply ruined, physically, for the prac- 
tice of a profession I love, a profession I have 
fully mastered, and — I’ll be happier when I can 
shake off this horrible envelope of disfigurement.” 
47 


CHAPTER IV 


THE HOSPITAL SHIP 

The energy of Doctor Gys was marvelous. He 
knew exactly what supplies would be needed to 
fit the Arabella thoroughly for her important 
mission, and with unlimited funds at his com- 
mand to foot the bills, he quickly converted the 
handsome yacht into a model hospital ship. Gys 
from the first developed a liking for Kelsey, the 
mate, whom he found a valuable assistant, and 
the two came to understand each other perfectly. 
Kelsey was a quiet man, more thoughtful than 
experienced in medical matters, but his common 
sense often guided him aright when his tech- 
nical knowledge was at fault. 

Captain Carg accepted the novel conditions 
thrust upon him, without a word of protest. He 
might secretly resent the uses to which his ship 
was being put, but his young master’s commands 
were law and his duty was to obey. The same 
48 


IN THE RED CROSS 


feeling prevailed among the other members of 
the crew, all of whom were Sangoans. 

In three days Jones and Maud Stanton returned 
from Washington. They were jubilant over their 
success. 

“ We’ve secured everything we wanted,” the 
boy told Uncle John, Beth and Patsy, with evi- 
dent enthusiasm. “ Not only have we the full 
sanction of the American Red Cross Society, but 
I have letters to the different branches in the 
war zone, asking for us every consideration. Not 
only that, but your senator proved himself a brick. 
What do you think? Here’s a letter from our 
secretary of state — another from the French 
charge d’affairs — half a dozen from prominent 
ambassadors of other countries! We’ve a free 
field in all Europe, practically, that will enable us 
to work to the best advantage.” 

“ It’s wonderful ! ” cried Patsy. 

“ Mr. Merrick is so well known as a philan- 
thropist that his name was a magic talisman for 
us,” said Maud. “ Moreover, our enterprise com- 
mands the sympathy of everyone. We had 
numerous offers of financial assistance, too.” 


49 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ I hope you didn’t accept them,” said Uncle 
John nervously. 

“ No,” answered the boy, “ I claimed this expe- 
dition to be our private and individual property. 
We can now do as we please, being under no 
obligations to any but ourselves.” 

“ That’s right,” said Uncle John. “ We don’t 
want to be hampered by the necessity of advising 
with others.” 

“ By the way, have you found a doctor? ” 

“ Yes.” 

“ A good one ? ” asked Maud quickly. 

“ Highly recommended, but homely as a rail 
fence,” continued Patsy, as her uncle hesitated. 

“ That’s nothing,” said Ajo lightly. 

“Nothing, eh? Well, wait till you see him,” 
she replied. “ You’ll never look Doctor Gys in 
the face more than once, I assure you. After 
that, you’ll be glad to keep your eyes on his vest 
buttons.” 

“ I like him immensely, though,” said Beth. 
“ He is clever, honest and earnest. The poor 
man can’t help his mutilations, which are the 
result of many unfortunate adventures.” 

50 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Sounds like just the man we wanted/’ 
declared A jo, and afterward he had no reason 
to recall that assertion. 

A week is a small time in which to equip a big 
ship, but money and energy can accomplish much 
and the news from the seat of war was so event- 
ful that they felt every moment to be precious 
and so they worked with feverish haste. The 
tide of German success had turned and their great 
army, from Paris to Vitry, was now in full 
retreat, fighting every inch of the way and leav- 
ing thousands of dead and wounded in its wake. 

“ How long will it take us to reach Calais? ” 
they asked Captain Carg eagerly. 

“ Eight or nine days/’ said he. 

“ We are not as fast as the big passenger 
steamers/’ explained young Jones, “ but with 
good weather the Arabella may be depended upon 
to make the trip in, good shape and fair time.” 

On the nineteenth of September, fully equipped 
and with her papers in order, the beautiful yacht 
left her anchorage and began her voyage. The 
weather proved exceptionally favorable. During 
the voyage the girls busied themselves preparing 
51 


AUNT JANE'S NIECES 

their modest uniforms and pumping Dr. Gys for 
all sorts of information, from scratches to ampu- 
tations. He gave them much practical and there- 
fore valuable advice to guide them in whatever 
emergencies might arise, and this was conveyed 
in the whimsical, half humorous manner that 
seemed characteristic of him. At first Gys had 
shrunk involuntarily from facing this bevy of 
young girls, but they had so frankly ignored his 
physical blemishes and exhibited so true a com- 
radeship to all concerned in the expedition, that 
the doctor soon felt perfectly at ease in their 
society. 

During the evenings he gave them practical 
demonstrations of the application of tourniquets, 
bandages and the like, while Uncle John and Ajo 
by turns posed as wounded soldiers. Gys was 
extraordinarily deft in all his manipulations and 
although Maud Stanton was a graduate nurse — 
with little experience, however — and Beth De 
Graf had studied the art for a year or more, it 
was Patsy Doyle who showed the most dexterity 
in assisting the doctor on these occasions. 

“ I don’t know whether I’ll faint at the sight 
52 


IN THE RED CROSS 


bf real blood,” she said, “ but I shall know pretty 
well what to do if I can keep my nerve.” 

The application of anaesthetics was another 
thing fully explained by Gys, but this could not 
be demonstrated. Patsy, however, was taught 
the use of the hypodermic needle, which Maud 
and Beth quite understood. 

“ We’ve a big stock of morphia, in its various 
forms,” said the doctor, “ and I expect it to 
prove of tremendous value in comforting our 
patients.” 

“ I’m not sure I approve the use of that drug,” 
remarked Uncle John. 

“ But think of the suffering we can allay by 
its use,” exclaimed Maud. “If ever morphia is 
justifiable, it is in war, where it can save many 
a life by conquering unendurable pain. I believe 
the discovery of morphine was the greatest bless- 
ing that humanity has ever enjoyed. Don’t you, 
Doctor Gys ? ” 

The one good eye of Gys had a queer way of 
twinkling when he was amused. It twinkled a9 
the girl asked this question. 

“ Morphine,” he replied, “ has destroyed more 

53 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

people than it has saved. You play with fire 
when you feed it to anyone, under any circum- 
stances. Nevertheless, I believe in its value on 
an expedition of this sort, and that is why I 
loaded up on the stuff. Let me advise you never 
to tell a patient that we are administering mor- 
phine. The result is all that he is concerned with 
and it is better he should not know what has 
relieved him.” 

On a sunny day when the sea was calm they 
slung a scaffold over the bow and painted a big 
red cross on either side of the white ship. Every- 
one aboard wore the Red Cross emblem on an 
arm band, even the sailors being so decorated. 
Uncle John was very proud of the insignia and 
loved to watch his girls moving around the deck 
in their sober uniforms and white caps. 

Jones endured the voyage splendidly and by 
this time had convinced himself that he was not 
again to be subject to the mal-de-mer of his first 
ocean trip. As they drew near to their destina- 
tion an atmosphere of subdued excitement per- 
vaded the Arabella , for even the sailors had 
caught the infection of the girls’ eagerness and 
54 


IN THE RED CROSS 

were anxious to get into action at the earliest 
moment 

It was now that Uncle John began to busy 
himself with his especial prize, a huge motor 
ambulance he had purchased in New York and 
which had been fully equipped for the require- 
ments of war. Indeed, an enterprising manufac- 
turer had prepared it with the expectation that 
some of the belligerent governments would pur- 
chase it, and Mr. Merrick considered himself for- 
tunate in securing it. It would accommodate six 
seriously wounded, on swinging beds, and twelve 
others, slightly wounded, who might be able to 
sit upon cushioned seats. The motor was very 
powerful and the driver was protected from stray 
bullets by an armored hood. 

In addition to this splendid machine, Mr. Mer- 
rick had secured a smaller ambulance that had 
not the advantage of the swinging beds but could 
be rushed more swiftly to any desired location. 
Both ambulances were decorated on all sides with 
the emblem of the Red Cross and would be 
invaluable in bringing the wounded to the Ara- 
bella . The ship carried a couple of small motor 
55 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

launches for connecting the shore with her 
anchorage. 

They had purposely brought no chauffeurs 
with them, as Uncle John believed foreign 
drivers, who were thoroughly acquainted with 
the country, would prove more useful than the 
American variety, and from experience he knew 
that a French chauffeur is the king of his 
profession. 

During the last days of the voyage Mr. Mer- 
rick busied himself in carefully inspecting every 
detail of his precious vehicles and explaining their 
operation to everyone on board. Even the girls 
would be able to run an ambulance on occasion, 
and the boy developed quite a mechanical talent 
in mastering the machines. 

“ I feel,” said young Jones, “ that I have had 
a rather insignificant part in preparing this expe- 
dition, for all I have furnished — aside from the 
boat itself — consists of two lots of luxuries that 
may or may not be needed.” 

“ And what may they be ? ” asked Dr. Gys, 
who was standing in the group beside him. 

“ Thermos flasks and cigarettes.” 

56 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Cigarettes ! ” exclaimed Beth, in horror. 

The doctor nodded approvingly. 

“ Capital ! ” said he. “ Next to our anodynes 
and anaesthetics, nothing will prove so comfort- 
ing to the wounded as cigarettes. They are sup- 
plied by nurses in all the hospitals in Europe. 
How many did you bring ? ” 

“ Ten cases of about twenty-five thousand 
each.” 

“ A quarter of a million cigarettes ! ” gasped 
Beth. 

“ Too few,” asserted the doctor in a tone of 
raillery, " but we’ll make them go as far as pos- 
sible. And the thermos cases are also valuable. 
Cool water to parched lips means a glimpse of 
heaven. Hot coffee will save many from exhaus- 
tion. You’ve done well, my boy.” 


57 


CHAPTER V 


NEARING THE FRAY 

On September twenty-eighth they entered the 
English Channel and were promptly signalled by 
a British warship, so they were obliged to lay 
to while a party of officers came aboard. The 
Arabella was flying the American flag and the 
Red Cross flag, but the English officer courteously 
but firmly persisted in searching the ship. What 
he found seemed to interest him, as did the papers 
and credentials presented for his perusal. 

“ And which side have you come to assist ? ” 
he asked. 

“ No side at all, sir/’ replied Jones, as master 
of the Arabella. “ The wounded, the sick and 
helpless, whatever uniform they chance to wear, 
will receive our best attention. But we are bound 
for Calais and intend to follow the French army.” 

The officer nodded gravely. 

“ Of course,” said he, “ you are aware that 

58 


IN THE RED CROSS 


the channel is full of mines and that progress 
is dangerous unless you have our maps to guide 
you. I will furnish your pilot with a diagram, 
provided you agree to keep our secret and deliver 
the diagram to the English officer you will meet 
at Calais.” 

They agreed to this and after the formalities 
were concluded the officer prepared to depart. 

“ I must congratulate you,” he remarked on 
leaving, 44 on having the best equipped hospital 
ship it has been my fortune to see. There are 
many in the service, as you know, but the boats 
are often mere tubs and the fittings of the sim- 
plest description. The wounded who come under 
your care will indeed be fortunate. * It is won- 
derful to realize that you have come all the way 
from America, and at so great an expense, to 
help the victims of this sad war. For the Allies 
I thank you, and — good-bye ! ” 

They remembered this kindly officer long after- 
ward, for he proved more generous than many of 
the English they met. 

Captain Carg now steamed ahead, watching his 
chart carefully to avoid the fields of mines, but 
59 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

within two hours he was again hailed, this time 
by an armored cruiser. The first officer having 
vised the ship’s papers, they were spared the delay 
of another search and after a brief examination 
were allowed to proceed. They found the chan- 
nel well patrolled by war craft and no sooner 
had they lost sight of one, than another quickly 
appeared. 

At Cherbourg a French dreadnaught halted 
them and an officer came aboard to give them a 
new chart of the mine fields between there and 
Calais and full instructions how to proceed safely. 
This officer, who spoke excellent English, asked 
a thousand questions and seemed grateful for 
their charitable assistance to his countrymen. 

“ You have chosen a dangerous post,” said he, 
“ but the Red Cross is respected everywhere — 
even by the Germans. Have you heard the latest 
news? We have driven them back to the Aisne 
and are holding the enemy well in check. Ant- 
werp is under siege, to be sure, but it can hold 
out indefinitely. The fighting will be all in Bel- 
gium soon, and then in Germany. Our watch- 
word is ‘ On to Berlin ! ’ ” 

60 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Perhaps we ought to proceed directly to 
Ostend,” said Uncle John. 

“ The Germans still hold it, monsieur. In a 
few days, perhaps, when Belgium is free of the 
invaders, you will find work enough to occupy 
you at Ostend; but I advise you not to attempt 
to go there now.” 

In spite of the friendly attitude of this officer 
and of the authorities at Cherbourg, they were 
detained at this port for several days before 
finally receiving permission to proceed. The 
delay was galling but had to be endured until the 
infinite maze of red tape was at an end. They 
reached Calais in the early evening and just man- 
aged to secure an anchorage among the fleet of 
warships in the harbor. 

Again they were obliged to show their papers 
and passports, now vised by representatives of 
both the English and French navies, but this for- 
mality being over they were given a cordial 
welcome. 

Uncle John and A jo decided to go ashore for 
the latest news and arrived in the city between 
nine and ten o’clock that same evening. They 
61 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 
found Calais in a state of intense excitement. 
The streets were filled with British and French 
soldiery, with whom were mingled groups of citi- 
zens, all eagerly discussing the war and casting 
uneasy glances at the black sky overhead for 
signs of the dreaded German Zeppelins. 

“How about Antwerp?” Jones asked an 
Englishman they found in -the lobby of one of 
the overcrowded hotels. 

The man turned to stare at him ; he looked his 
questioner up and down with such insolence that 
the boy’s fists involuntarily doubled; then he 
turned his back and walked away. A bystander 
laughed with amusement. He also was an Eng- 
lishman, but wore the uniform of a subaltern. 

“ What can you expect, without a formal intro- 
duction?” he asked young Jones. “But I’ll 
answer your question, sir; Antwerp is doomed.” 

“ Oh; do you really think so? ” inquired Uncle 
John uneasily. 

“ It’s a certainty, although I hate to admit it. 
We at the rear are not very well posted on what 
is taking place over in Belgium, but it’s said the 
bombardment of Antwerp began yesterday and 
62 


IN THE RED CROSS 


it's impossible for the place to hold out for long. 
Perhaps even now the city lias fallen under the 
terrific bombardment” 

There was something thrilling in the sug- 
gestion. 

“ And then? ” asked Jones, almost breathlessly. 

The man gave a typical British shrug. 

“ Then we fellows will find work to do,” he 
replied. “ But it is better to fight than to eat 
our hearts out by watching and waiting. We’re 
the reserves, you know, and we’ve hardly smelled 
powder yet.” 

After conversing with several of the soldiers 
and civilians — the latter being mostly too 
unnerved to talk coherently — the Americans 
made their way back to the quay with heavy 
hearts. They threaded lanes filled with sobbing 
women, many of whom had frightened children 
clinging to their skirts, passed groups of old men 
and boys who were visibly trembling with trepi- 
dation and stood aside for ranks of brisk soldiery 
who marched with an alertness that was in strong 
contrast with the terrified attitude of the citizens. 
There was war in the air — fierce, relentless war 
63 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

in every word and action they encountered — and 
it had the effect of depressing the newcomers. 

That night an earnest conference was held 
aboard the Arabella . 

“ As I understand it, here is the gist of the 
situation,” began Ajo. “ The line of battle along 
the Aisne is stationary — for the present, at least. 
Both sides are firmly entrenched and it’s going 
to be a long, hard fight. Antwerp is being bom- 
barded, and although it’s a powerful fortress, the 
general opinion is that it can’t hold out for long. 
If it falls, there will be a rush of Germans down 
this coast, first to capture Dunkirk, a few miles 
above here, and then Calais itself.” 

“ In other words,” continued Uncle John, 
“ this is likely to be the most important battle- 
ground for the next few weeks. Now, the ques- 
tion to decide is this: Shall we disembark our 
ambulances and run them across to Arras, begin- 
ning our work behind the French trenches, or go 
on to Dunkirk, where we are likely to plunge 
into the thickest of the war? We’re not fighters, 
you know, but noncombatants, bent on an errand 
of mercy. There are wounded everywhere.” 

64 


IN THE RED CROSS 


They considered this for a long time without 
reaching a decision, for there were some in the 
party to argue on either side of the question. 
Uncle John continued to favor the trenches, as 
the safest position for his girls to work; but the 
girls themselves, realizing little of the dangers to 
be encountered, preferred to follow the fortunes 
of the Belgians. 

“ They’ve been so brave and noble, these people 
of Belgium,” said Beth, “ that I would take more 
pleasure in helping them than any other branch 
of the allied armies.” 

“ But, my dear, there’s a mere handful of them 
left,” protested her uncle. “ I’m told that at 
Dunkirk there is still a remnant of the Belgian 
army — very badly equipped — but most of the 
remaining force is with King Albert in Antwerp. 
If the place falls they will either be made pris- 
oners by the Germans or they may escape into 
Holland, where their fighting days will be ended 
for the rest of the war. However, there is no 
need to decide this important question to-night. 
To-morrow I am to see the French commandant 
and I will get his advice.” 

65 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

The interview with the French commandant of 
Calais, which was readily accorded the Ameri- 
cans, proved very unsatisfactory. The general 
had just received reports that Antwerp was in 
flames and the greater part of the city already de- 
molished by the huge forty-two-centimetre guns 
of the Germans. The fate of King Albert’s army 
was worrying him exceedingly and he was there- 
fore in little mood for conversation. 

The American consul could do little to assist 
them. After the matter was explained to him, he 
said : 

“ I advise you to wait a few days for your 
decision. Perhaps a day — an hour — will 
change the whole angle of the war. Strange 
portents are in the air; no one knows what will 
happen next. Come to me, from time to time, 
and I will give you all the information I secure. ,, 

Dr. Gys had accompanied Jones and Mr. 
Merrick into Calais to-day, and while he had 
little to say during the various interviews his 
observations were shrewd and comprehensive. 
When they returned to the deck of the Arabella, 
Gys said to the girls : 


66 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ There is nothing worth while for us to do 
here. The only wounded I saw were a few 
Frenchmen parading their bandaged heads and 
hands for the admiration of the women. The 
hospitals are well organized and quite full, it is 
true, but Em told that no more wounded are 
being sent here. The Sisters of Mercy and the 
regular French Red Cross force seem very com- 
petent to handle the situation, and there are two 
government hospital ships already anchored in 
this port. We would only be butting in to offer 
our services. But down the line, from Arras 
south, there is real war in the trenches and many 
are falling every day. Arras is less than fifty 
miles from here — >a two or three hours' run for 
our ambulances — and we could bring the 
wounded here and care for them as we originally 
intended." 

“ Fifty miles is a long distance for a wounded 
man to travel," objected Maud. 

“True," said the doctor, “but the roads are 
excellent." 

“ Remember those swinging cots," said Ajo. 

“ We might try it," said Patsy, anxious to be 

67 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

doing something. “ Couldn’t we start to-morrow 
for Arras, Uncle ? ” 

“ It occurs to me that we must first find a 
chauffeur,” answered Mr. Merrick, “ and from 
my impressions of the inhabitants of Calais, that 
will prove a difficult task.” 

“ Why?” 

“ Every man jack of ’em is scared stiff,” said 
A jo, with a laugh. “ But we might ask the com- 
mandant to recommend someone. The old boy 
seems friendly enough.” 

The next day, however, brought important 
news from Antwerp. The city had surrendered, 
the Belgian army had made good its escape and 
was now retreating toward Ostend, closely fol- 
lowed by the enemy. 

This news was related by a young orderly who 
met them as they entered the Hotel de Ville. 
They were also told that the commandant was 
very busy but would try to see them presently. 
This young Frenchman spoke English per- 
fectly and was much excited by the morning’s 
dispatches. 

“ This means that the war is headed our way 

68 


IN THE RED CROSS 


at last ! ” he cried enthusiastically. “ The Ger- 
mans will make a dash to capture both Dunkirk 
and Calais, and already large bodies of reinforce- 
ments are on the way to defend these cities.” 

“ English, or French? ” asked Uncle John. 

“ This is French territory,” was the embar- 
rassed reply, “ but we are glad to have our allies, 
the English, to support us. Their General French 
is now at Dunkirk, and it is probable the Eng- 
lish will join the French and Belgians at that 
point.” 

“ They didn’t do much good at Antwerp, it 
seems,” remarked Ajo. 

“ Ah, they were naval reserves, monsieur, and 
not much could be expected of them. But do 
not misunderstand me ; I admire the English pri- 
vate — the fighting man — exceedingly. Were 
the officers as clever as their soldiers are brave, 
the English would be irresistible.” 

As this seemed a difficult subject to discuss, 
Uncle John asked the orderly if he knew of a 
good chauffeur to drive their ambulance — an 
able, careful man who might be depended upon 
in emergencies. 


69 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

The orderly reflected. 

“ We have already impressed the best drivers,” 
he said, “ but it may be the general will consent 
to spare you one of them. Your work is so 
important that we must take good care of you.” 

But when they were admitted to the general 
they found him in a more impatient mood than 
before. He really could not undertake to direct 
Red Cross workers or advise them. They were 
needed everywhere; everywhere they would be 
welcome. And now, he regretted to state that he 
was very busy; if they had other business with 
the department, Captain Meroux would act as its 
representative. 

Before accepting this dismissal Uncle John 
ventured to ask about a chauffeur. Rather 
brusquely the general stated that they could ill 
afford to spare one from the service. A des- 
perate situation now faced the Allies in Flanders. 
Captain Meroux must take care of the Ameri- 
cans; doubtless he could find a driver for their 
ambulance — perhaps a Belgian. 

But in the outer office • the orderly smiled 
doubtfully. 


70 


IN THE RED CROSS 


A driver? To be sure; but such as he could 
furnish would not be of the slightest use to them. 
All the good chauffeurs had been impressed and 
the general was not disposed to let them have one. 

“ He mentioned a Belgian,” suggested Uncle 
John. 

“ I know ; but the Belgians in Calais are all 
fugitives, terror-stricken and unmanned.” He 
grew thoughtful a moment and then continued: 
“ My advice would be to take your ship to Dun- 
kirk. It is only a little way, through a good 
channel, and you will be as safe there as at Calais. 
For, if Dunkirk falls, Calais will fall with it. 
From there, moreover, the roads are better to 
Arras and Peronne, and it is there you stand the 
best chance of getting a clever Belgian chauffeur. 
If you wish — ” he hesitated, looking at them 
keenly. 

“ Well, sir?” 

“ If you are really anxious to get to the firing 
line and do the most good, Dunkirk is your logical 
station. If you are merely seeking the notoriety 
of being charitably inclined, remain here.” 

They left the young man, reflecting upon his 
7i 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

advice and gravely considering its value. They 
next visited one of the hospitals, where an over- 
worked but friendly English surgeon volunteered 
a similar suggestion. Dunkirk, he declared, 
would give them better opportunities than Calais. 

The remainder of the day they spent in getting 
whatever news had filtered into the city and 
vainly seeking a competent man for chauffeur. 
On the morning of October eleventh they left 
Calais and proceeded slowly along the buoyed 
channel that is the only means of approaching 
the port of Dunkirk by water. The coast line 
is too shallow to allow ships to enter from the 
open sea. 

On their arrival at the Flemish city — twelve 
miles nearer the front than Calais — they found 
an entirely different atmosphere. No excitement, 
no terror was visible anywhere. The people 
quietly pursued their accustomed avocations and 
the city was as orderly as in normal times. 

The town was full of Belgians, however, both 
soldiers and civilians, while French and British 
troops were arriving hourly in regiments and bat- 
talions. General French, the English commander 
72 


IN THE RED CROSS 


in chief, had located his headquarters at a promi- 
nent hotel, and a brisk and businesslike air per- 
vaded the place, with an entire lack of confusion. 
Most of the Belgians were reservists who were 
waiting to secure uniforms and arms. They 
crowded all the hotels, cafes and inns and seemed 
as merry and light-hearted as if no news of their 
king’s defeat and precipitate retreat had arrived. 
Not until questioned would they discuss the war 
at all, yet every man was on the qui vive, expect- 
ing hourly to hear the roar of guns announcing 
the arrival of the fragment of the Belgian army 
that had escaped from Antwerp. 

To-day the girls came ashore with the men of 
their party, all three wearing their Red Cross 
uniforms and caps, and it was almost pathetic 
to note the deference with which all those war- 
riors — both bronzed and fair — removed their 
caps until the “ angels of mercy ” had passed 
them by. 

They made the rounds of the hospitals, which 
were already crowded with wounded, and Gys 
stopped at one long enough to assist the French 
doctor in a delicate operation. Patsy stood by 
73 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

to watch this surgery, her face white and drawn, 
for this was her first experience of the sort ; but 
Maud and Beth volunteered their services and 
were so calm and deft that Doctor Gys was well 
pleased with them. 


74 


CHAPTER VI 


LITTLE MAURIE 

It was nearly evening when the Americans 
finally returned to the quay, close to which the 
Arabella was moored. As they neared the place 
a great military automobile came tearing along, 
scattering pedestrians right and left, made a sud- 
den swerve, caught a man who was not agile 
enough to escape and sent him spinning along 
the dock until he fell headlong, a crumpled heap. 

“ Ah, here is work for us ! ” exclaimed Doctor 
Gys, running forward to raise the man and 
examine his condition. The military car had not 
paused in its career and was well out of sight, 
but a throng of indignant civilians gathered 
around. 

“ There are no severe injuries, but he seems 
unconscious,” reported Gys. “ Let us get him 
aboard the ship.” 

The launch was waiting for them, and with the 

75 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

assistance of Jones, the doctor placed the injured 
man in the boat and he was taken to the ship 
and placed in one of the hospital berths. 

“ Our first patient is not a soldier, after all,” 
remarked Patsy, a little disappointed. “ I shall 
let Beth and Maud look after him.” 

“ Well, he is wounded, all right,” answered 
A jo, “ and without your kind permission Beth 
and Maud are already below, looking after him. 
I’m afraid he won’t require their services long, 
poor fellow.” 

“ Why didn’t he get out of the way? ” inquired 
Patsy with a shudder. 

“ Can’t say. Preoccupied, perhaps. There 
wasn’t much time to jump, anyhow. I suppose 
that car carried a messenger with important news, 
for it isn’t like those officers to be reckless of 
the lives of citizens.” 

“ No; they seem in perfect sympathy with the 
people,” she returned. “ I wonder what the news 
can be, Ajo.” 

For answer a wild whistling sounded over- 
head ; a cry came from those ashore and the next 
instant there was a loud explosion. Everyone 
76 


IN THE RED CROSS 


rushed to the side, where Captain Carg was 
standing, staring at the sky. 

“What was it, Captain ? ” gasped Patsy. 

Carg stroked his grizzled beard. 

“ A German bomb, Miss Patsy ; but I think it 
did no damage.” 

“ A bomb ! Then the Germans are on us ? ” 

“ Not exactly. An aeroplane dropped the 
thing.” 

“Oh. Where is it?” 

“The aeroplane? Pretty high up, I reckon,” 
answered the captain. “ I had a glimpse of it, 
for a moment ; then it disappeared in the clouds.” 

“ We must get our ambulances ashore,” said 
Jones. 

“ No hurry, sir; plenty of time,” asserted the 
captain. “ I think I saw the airship floating 
north, so it isn't likely to bother us again just 
now.” 

“What place is north of us?” inquired the 
girl, trembling a little in spite of her efforts at 
control. 

“ I think it is Nieuport — or perhaps Dix- 
mude,” answered Carg. “ I visited Belgium 

77 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

once, when I was a young man, but I cannot 
remember it very well. We’re pretty close to 
the Belgian border, at Dunkirk.” 

“There’s another!” cried Ajo, as a second 
whistling shriek sounded above them. This time 
the bomb fell into the sea and raised a small 
water-spout, some half mile distant. They could 
now see plainly a second huge aircraft circling 
above them; but this also took flight toward the 
north and presently disappeared. 

Uncle John came hurrying on deck with an 
anxious face and together the group of Ameri- 
cans listened for more bombs; but that was all 
that came their way that night. 

“ Well,” said Patsy, when she had recovered 
her equanimity, “ we’re at the front at last, Uncle. 
How do you like it ? ” 

“ I hadn’t thought of bombs,” he replied. 
“ But we’re in for it, and I suppose we’ll have to 
take whatever comes.” 

Now came the doctor, supporting the injured 
man on one side while Maud Stanton held his 
opposite arm. Gys was smiling broadly — a 
rather ghastly expression. 

78 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ No bones broken, sir,” he reported to Mr. 
Merrick. “ Only a good shake-up and plenty of 
bruises. He can’t be induced to stay in bed.” 

“ Bed, when the Germans come ? ” exclaimed 
the invalid, scornfully, speaking in fair English. 
“It is absurd ! We can sleep when we have 
driven them back to their dirty Faderland — we 
can sleep, then, and rest. Now, it is a crime to 
rest.” 

They looked at him curiously. He was a small 
man — almost a tiny man — lean and sinewy and 
with cheeks the color of bronze and eyes the hue 
of the sky. His head was quite bald at the top; 
his face wrinkled; he had a bushy mustache and 
a half-grown beard. His clothing was soiled, 
torn and neglected; but perhaps his accident 
accounted for much of its condition. His age 
might be anywhere from thirty to forty years. 
He looked alert and shrewd. 

“ You are Belgian? ” said Uncle John. 

He leaned against the rail, shaking off the doc- 
tor’s support, as he replied: 

“ Yes, monsieur. Belgian born and American 
trained.” There was a touch of pride in his 
79 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

voice. “ It was in America that I made my 
fortune.” 

“ Indeed.” 

“ It is true. I was waiter in a New York res- 
taurant for five years. Then I retired. I came 
back to Belgium. I married my wife. I bought 
land. It is near Ghent. I am, as you have 
guessed, a person of great importance.” 

“ Ah ; an officer, perhaps. Civil, or military ? ” 
inquired Ajo with mock deference. 

“ Of better rank than either. I am a citizen.” 

“ Now, I like that spirit,” said Uncle John 
approvingly. “ What is your name, my good 
man?” 

“ Maurie, monsieur; Jakob Maurie. Perhaps 
you have met me — in New York.” 

“ I do not remember it. But if you live in 
Ghent, why are you in Dunkirk?” 

He cast an indignant glance at his questioner, 
but Uncle John’s serene expression disarmed him. 

“Monsieur is not here long?” 

“ We have just arrived.” 

“You cannot see Belgium from here. If you 
are there — in my country — you will find that 
80 


IN THE RED CROSS 


the German is everywhere. I have my home at 
Brussels crushed by a shell which killed my baby 
girl. My land is devastate — my crop is taken 
to feed German horse and German thief. There 
is no home left. So my wife and my boy and 
girl I take away; I take them to Ostend, where 
I hope to get ship to England. At Ostend I am 
arrested by Germans. Not my wife and children ; 
only myself. I am put in prison. For three 
weeks they keep me, and then I am put out. They 
push me into the street. No one apologize. I 
ask for my family. They laugh and turn away. 
I search everywhere for my wife. A friend 
whom I meet thinks she has gone to Ypres, for 
now no Belgian can take ship from Ostend to 
England. So I go to Ypres. The wandering 
people have all been sent to Nieuport and Dun- 
kirk. Still I search. My wife is not in Nieuport. 
I come here, three days ago; I cannot find her 
in Dunkirk ; she has vanished. Perhaps — but I 
will not trouble you with that. This is my story, 
ladies and gentlemen. Behold in me — a wealthy 
landowner of Liege — the outcast from home 
and country ! ” 


81 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ It is dreadful ! ” cried Patsy. 

“ It is fierce,” said the man. “ Only an Ameri- 
can can understand the horror of that word.” 

“ Your fate is surely a cruel one, Maurie,” 
declared Mr. Merrick. 

“ Perhaps,” ventured Beth, “ we may help you 
to find your wife and children.” 

The Belgian seemed pleased with these expres- 
sions of sympathy. He straightened up, threw 
out his chest and bowed very low. 

“ That is my story,” he repeated ; “ but you 
must know it is also the story of thousands of 
Belgians. Always I meet men searching for 
wives. Always I meet wives searching for hus- 
bands. Well! it is our fate — the fate of con- 
quered Belgium.” 

Maud brought him a deck chair and made him 
sit down. 

“ You will stay here to-night,” she said. 

“ That’s right,” said Dr. Gys. “ He can’t 
resume his search until morning, that’s certain. 
Such a tumble as he had would have killed an 
ordinary man; but the fellow seems made of 
iron.” 


82 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ To be a waiter — a good waiter — develops 
the muscles/’ said Maurie. 

Ajo gave him a cigarette, which he accepted 
eagerly. After a few puffs he said: 

“ I heard the German bombs. That means the 
enemy grows insolent. First they try to frighten 
us with bombs, then they attack.” 

“ How far away do you think the Germans 
are?” asked Beth. 

“ Nieuport les Bains. But they will get no 
nearer.” 

“ No?” 

“ Surely not, mamselle. Our soldiers are there, 
awaiting them. Our soldiers, and the French.” 

“ And you think the enemy cannot capture 
Dunkirk? ” inquired Jones. 

“ Dunkirk ! The Germans capture Dunkirk ? 
It is impossible.” 

“ Why impossible ? ” 

“ Dunkirk is fortified ; it is the entrance to 
Calais, to Dover and London. Look you, m’sieur; 
we cannot afford to lose this place. We cannot 
afford to lose even Nieuport, which is our last 
stand on Belgian soil. Therefore, the Germans 

83 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

cannot take it, for there are still too many of us 
to kill before Kitchener comes to save us.” He 
spoke thoughtfully, between puffs of his cigar- 
ette, and added: "But of course, if the great 
English army does not come, and they kill us all, 
then it will not matter in the least what becomes 
of our country.” 

Maurie’s assertion did not wholly reassure 
them. The little Belgian was too bombastic to 
win their confidence in his judgment. Yet Jones 
declared that Maurie doubtless knew the country 
better than anyone they had yet met and the 
doctor likewise defended his patient. Indeed, Gys 
seemed to have taken quite a fancy to the little 
man and long after the others had retired for the 
night he sat on deck talking with the Belgian and 
getting his views of the war. 

"You say you had land at Ghent?” he once 
asked. 

" It is true, Doctor.” 

“ But afterward you said Brussels.” 

Maurie was not at all confused. 

"Ah; I may have done so. You see, I traded 
my property.” 


84 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ And, if I am not mistaken, you spoke of a 
home at Liege.” 

Maurie looked at him reproachfully. 

“ Is there not much land in Belgium?” he 
demanded ; “ and is a rich man confined to one 
home ? Liege was my summer home ; in the win- 
ter I removed to Antwerp.” 

“ You said Ghent.” 

“ Ghent it was, Doctor. Misfortune has dulled 
my brain. I am not the man I was,” he added 
with a sigh. 

“ Nevertheless,” said Gys, “ you still possess 
the qualities of a good waiter. Whatever hap- 
pens here, Maurie, you can always go back to 
America.” 


85 


CHAPTER VII 


ON THE FIRING LINE 

Next morning they were all wakened at an 
early hour by the roar of artillery, dimly heard 
in the distance. The party aboard the Arabella 
quickly assembled on deck, where little Maurie 
was found leaning over the rail. 

“ They’re at it,” he remarked, wagging his 
head. “ The Germans are at Nieuport, now, and 
some of them are over against Pervyse. I hear 
sounds from Dixmude, too; the rattle of machine 
guns. It will be a grand battle, this ! I wonder 
if our Albert is there.” 

“ Who is he ? ” asked Patsy. 

“ The king. They told me yesterday he had 
escaped.” 

“ We must get the ambulances out at once,” 
said Beth. 

“ I’ll attend to that,” replied Uncle John, par- 
taking of the general excitement. “ Warp up 
to the dock, Captain Carg, and I’ll get some of 
86 


IN THE RED CROSS 


those men to help us swing the cars over the side. ,, 

“ How about a chauffeur?” asked Dr. Gys, 
who was already bringing out bandages and sup- 
plies for the ambulances. 

“If we can’t find a man, I’ll drive you myself,” 
declared Ajo. 

“ But you don’t know the country.” 

Gys turned to the little Belgian. 

“ Can’t you find us a driver ? ” he asked. “ We 
want a steady, competent man to run our 
ambulance.” 

“ Where are you going? ” asked Maurie. 

“To the firing line.” 

“ Good. I will drive you myself.” 

“ You? Do you understand a car? ” 

“ I am an expert, monsieur.” 

“ A waiter in a restaurant? ” 

“ Pah ! That was five years ago. I will show 
you. I can drive any car ever made — and I 
know every inch of the way.” 

“ Then you’re our man,” exclaimed Mr. Mer- 
rick, much relieved. 

As the yacht swung slowly alongside the dock 
the Belgian said: 


87 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ While you get ready, I will go ashore for 
news. When I come back — very quick — then 
I will know everything.” 

Before he ran down the ladder Patsy clasped 
around his arm a band bearing the insignia of 
the Red Cross. He watched her approvingly, 
with little amused chuckles, and then quickly dis- 
appeared in the direction of the town. 

“ He doesn’t seem injured in the least by his 
accident,” said the girl, looking after him as he 
darted along. 

“ No,” returned Gys; “ he is one of those fel- 
lows who must be ripped to pieces before they 
can feel anything. But let us thank heaven he 
can drive a car.” 

Mr. Merrick had no difficulty in getting all the 
assistance required to lower the two ambulances 
to the dock. They had already been set up and 
put in order, so the moment they were landed 
they were ready for use. 

A few surgical supplies were added by Dr. Gys 
and then they looked around for the Belgian. 
Although scarce an hour had elapsed since he 
departed, he came running back just as he was 
88 


IN THE RED CROSS 


needed, puffing a little through haste, his eyes 
shining with enthusiasm. 

“ Albert is there ! ” he cried. “ The king and 
his army are at Nieuport. They will open the 
dykes and flood all the country but the main road, 
and then we can hold the enemy in check. They 
will fight, those Germans, but they cannot ad- 
vance, for we will defend the road and the sand 
dunes.” 

“ Aren’t they fighting now? ” asked Jones. 

“ Oh, yes, some of the big guns are spitting, 
but what is that? A few will fall, but we have 
yet thousands to face the German horde.” 

“ Let us start at once,” pleaded Maud. 

Maurie began to examine the big ambulance. 
He was spry as a cat. In ten minutes he knew 
all that was under the hood, had tested the levers, 
looked at the oil and gasoline supply and started 
the motor. 

“ I’ll sit beside you to help in case of emer- 
gency,” said Ajo, taking his place. Dr. Gys, Dr. 
Kelsey and the three girls sat inside. Patsy had 
implored Uncle John not to go on this prelimi- 
nary expedition and he had hesitated until the 
89 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

last moment; but the temptation was too strong 
to resist and even as the wheels started to revolve 
he sprang in and closed the door behind him. 

“ You are my girls,” he said, “ and wherever 
you go, I’ll tag along.” 

Maurie drove straight into the city and to the 
north gate, Jones clanging the bell as they swept 
along. Every vehicle gave them the right of way 
and now and then a cheer greeted the glittering 
new Red Cross ambulance, which bore above its 
radiator a tiny, fluttering American flag. 

They were not stopped at the gate, for although 
strict orders had been issued to allow no one to 
leave Dunkirk, the officer in charge realized the 
sacred mission of the Americans and merely 
doffed his cap in salutation as the car flashed by. 

The road to Furnes was fairly clear, but as 
they entered that town they found the streets 
cluttered with troops, military automobiles, sup- 
ply wagons, artillery, ammunition trucks and 
bicycles. The boy clanged his bell continuously 
and as if by magic the way opened before the 
Red Cross and cheers followed them on their 
way. 

90 


IN THE RED CROSS 


The eyes of the little Belgian were sparkling 
like jewels; his hands on the steering wheel were 
steady as a rock; he drove with skill and judg- 
ment. Just now the road demanded skill, for a 
stream of refugees was coming toward them from 
Nieuport and a stream of military motors, 
bicycles and wagons, with now and then a horse- 
man, flowed toward the front. A mile or two 
beyond Furnes they came upon a wounded sol- 
dier, one leg bandaged and stained with blood 
while he hobbled along leaning upon the shoulder 
of a comrade whose left arm hung helpless. 

Maurie drew up sharply and Beth sprang out 
and approached the soldiers. 

“ Get inside,” she said in French. 

“ No,” replied one, smiling; “ we are doing 
nicely, thank you. Hurry forward, for they need 
you there.” 

“ Who dressed your wounds ? ” she inquired. 

“ The Red Cross. There are many there, hard 
at work; but more are needed. Hurry forward, 
for some of our boys did not get off as lightly 
as we.” 

She jumped into the ambulance and away it 
9i 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

dashed, but progress became slower presently. 
The road was broad and high; great hillocks of 
sand — the Dunes — lay between it and the 
ocean; on the other side the water from the 
opened dykes was already turning the fields into 
an inland sea. In some places it lapped the edges 
of the embankment that formed the roadway. 

Approaching Nieuport, they discovered the 
Dunes to be full of soldiers, who had dug pits 
behind the sandy hillocks for protection, and in 
them planted the dog-artillery and one or two 
large machine guns. These were trained on the 
distant line of Germans, who were also entrench- 
ing themselves. All along the edge of the village 
the big guns were in action and there was a con- 
stant interchange of shot and shell from both 
sides. 

As Maurie dodged among the houses with the 
big car a shell descended some two hundred yards 
to the left of them, exploded with a crash and 
sent a shower of brick and splinters high into 
the air. A little way farther on the ruins of a 
house completely blocked the street and they 
were obliged to turn back and seek another 
92 


IN' THE RED CROSS 


passage. Thus partially skirting the town they 
at last left the houses behind them and approached 
the firing line, halting scarcely a quarter of a 
mile distant from the actual conflict. 

As far as the eye could reach, from Nieuport 
to the sea at the left, and on toward Ypres at the 
right of them, the line of Belgians, French and 
British steadily faced the foe. Close to where 
they halted the ambulance stood a detachment 
that had lately retired from the line, their places 
having been taken by reserves. One of the offi- 
cers told Mr. Merrick that they had been facing 
bullets since daybreak and the men seemed almost 
exhausted. Their faces were blackened by dust 
and powder and their uniforms torn and dis- 
ordered ; many stood without caps or coats despite 
the chill in the air. And yet these fellows were 
laughing together and chatting as pleasantly as 
children just released from school. Even those 
who had wounds made light of their hurts. 
Clouds of smoke hovered low in the air; the 
firing was incessant. 

Our girls were thrilled by this spectacle as 
they had never been thrilled before — perhaps 
93 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

never might be again. While they still kept their 
seats, Maurie started with a sudden jerk, made 
a sharp turn and ran the ambulance across a ridge 
of solid earth that seemed to be the only one of 
such character amongst all that waste of sand. 
It brought them somewhat closer to the line but 
their driver drew up behind a great dune that 
afforded them considerable protection. 

Fifty yards away was another ambulance with 
its wheels buried to the hubs in the loose sand. 
Red Cross nurses and men wearing the emblem 
on their arms and caps were passing here and 
there, assisting the injured with “first aid,” tem- 
porarily bandaging heads, arms and legs or carry- 
ing to the rear upon a stretcher a more seriously 
injured man. Most of this corps were French; 
a few were English; some were Belgian. Our 
friends were the only Americans on the field. 

Uncle John’s face was very grave as he alighted 
in the wake of his girls, who paid no attention 
to the fighting but at once ran to assist some of 
the wounded who came staggering toward the 
ambulance, some even creeping painfully on hands 
and knees. In all Mr. Merrick’s conceptions of 
94 


























IN THE RED CROSS 


the important mission they had undertaken, noth- 
ing like the nature of this desperate conflict had 
even dawned upon him. He had known that the 
Red Cross was respected by all belligerents, and 
that knowledge had led him to feel that his girls 
would be fairly safe; but never had he counted 
on spent bullets, stray shells or the mad rush of 
a charge. 

“ Very good ! ” cried Maurie briskly. “ Here 
we see what no one else can see. The Red Cross 
is a fine passport to the grand stand of war.” 

“ Come with me — quick!” shouted Ajo, his 
voice sounding shrill through the din. “ I saw a 
fellow knocked out — there — over yonder!” 

As he spoke he grabbed a stretcher and ran 
forward, Maurie following at his heels. Uncle 
John saw the smoke swallow them up, saw Beth 
and’ Maud each busy with lint, plasters and 
bandages, saw Patsy supporting a tall, grizzled 
warrior who came limping toward the car. Then 
he turned and saw Doctor Gys, crouching low 
against the protecting sand, his disfigured face 
working convulsively and every limb trembling 
as with an ague. 


95 


CHAPTER VIII 


THE COWARD 

“ Great heavens I ” gasped Mr. Merrick, run- 
ning toward the doctor. “ Are you hit ? ” 

Gys looked up at him appealingly and nodded. 

“ Where did it strike you? Was it a bullet — 
or what ? ” 

The doctor wrung his hands, moaning pitifully. 
Uncle John bent over him. 

“ Tell me ” he said. “ Tell me, Gys ! ” 

“I — Pm scared, sir — s-sr-scared stiff. It’s 
that yellow s-s-s-streak in me ; I — I — can’t help 
it, sir.” Then he collapsed, crouching lifelessly 
close to the sand. 

Uncle John was amazed. He drew back with 
such an expression of scorn that Gys, lying with 
face upward, rolled over to hide his own features 
in the sand. But his form continued to twist and 
shake convulsively. 

Patsy came up with her soldier, whose gaudy 

96 


IN THE RED CROSS 


uniform proclaimed him an officer. He had a 
rugged, worn face, gray hair and mustache, stem 
eyes. His left side was tom and bleeding where 
a piece of shell had raked him from shoulder to 
knee. No moan did he utter as Mr. Merrick and 
the girl assisted him to one of the swinging beds, 
and then Patsy, with white, set face but steady 
hands, began at once to cut away the clothing 
and get at the wound. This was her first prac- 
tical experience and she meant to prove her mettle 
or perish in the attempt. 

Uncle John skipped over to the sand bank and 
clutched Gys savagely by the collar. 

“ Get up ! ” he commanded. “ Here’s a man 
desperately wounded, who needs your best skill 
— and at once.” 

Gys pulled himself free and sat up, seeming 
dazed for the moment. Then he rubbed his head 
briskly with both hands, collected his nerve and 
slowly rose to his feet. He cast fearful glances 
at the firing line, but the demand for his surgical 
skill was a talisman that for a time enabled him 
to conquer his terror. With frightened back- 
ward glances he ran to the ambulance and made 
9 7 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

a dive into it as if a pack of wolves was at his 
heels. 

Safely inside, one glance at the wounded man 
caused Gys to stiffen suddenly. He became steady 
and alert and noting that Patsy had now bared a 
portion of the gaping wound the doctor seized a 
thermos flask of hot water and in a moment was 
removing the clotted blood in a deft and intelli- 
gent manner. 

Now came Jones and Maurie bearing the man 
they had picked up. As they set the stretcher 
down, Uncle John came over. 

“ Shall we put him inside ? ” asked Mr. 
Merrick. 

“No use, I think,” panted the Belgian. 

“Where’s the doctor?” asked Ajo. 

Kelsey, who had been busy elsewhere, now 
approached and looked at the soldier on the 
stretcher. 

“ The man is dead,” he said. “ He doesn’t 
need us now.” 

“ Off with him, then ! ” cried Maurie, and they 
laid the poor fellow upon the sand and covered 
him with a cloth. “ Come, then,” urged the little 
98 


IN THE RED CROSS 


chauffeur, excitedly, “ lots more out there are still 
alive. We get one quick.” 

They left in a run in one direction while 
Kelsey, who had come to the ambulance for sup- 
plies, went another way. Mr. Merrick looked 
around for the other two girls. Only Maud 
Stanton was visible through the smoky haze. 
Uncle John approached her just as a shell dropped 
into the sand not fifty feet away. It did not 
explode but plowed a deep furrow and sent a 
shower of sand in every direction. 

Maud had just finished dressing a bullet wound 
in the arm of a young soldier who smiled as he 
watched her. Then, as she finished the work, he 
bowed low, muttered his thanks, and catching up 
his gun rushed back into the fray. It was a flesh 
wound and until it grew more painful he could 
still fight. 

“ Where are the Germans? ” asked Uncle John. 
“ I haven’t seen one yet.” 

As he spoke a great cheer rose from a thousand 
throats. The line before them wavered an instant 
and then rushed forward and disappeared in the 
smoke of battle. 


99 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ Is it a charge, do you think ? ” asked Maud, 
as they stood peering into the haze. 

“ I — I don’t know,” he stammered. “ This 
is so — so bewildering — that it all seems like 
a dream. Where’s Beth ? ” 

“ I don’t know.” 

“Are you looking for a young lady — a 
nurse? ” asked a voice beside them. “ She’s over 
yonder,” he swung one arm toward the distant 
sand dunes. The other was in a sling. “ She 
has just given me first aid and sent me to the 
rear — God bless her ! ” Then he trailed on, a 
British Tommy Atkins, while with one accord 
Maud and Uncle John moved in the direction he 
had indicated. 

“ She mustn’t be so reckless,” said Beth’s uncle, 
nervously. “ It’s bad enough back here, but every 
step nearer the firing line doubles the danger.” 

“ I do not agree with you, sir,” answered 
Maud quietly. “ A man was killed not two paces 
from me, a little while ago.” 

He shuddered and wiped the sweat from his 
forehead with a handkerchief, but made no reply. 
They climbed another line of dunes and in the 


ioo 


IN THE RED CROSS 


hollow beyond came upon several fallen soldiers, 
one of whom was moaning with pain. Maud ran 
to kneel beside him and in a twinkling had her 
hypodermic needle in his arm. 

“ Bear it bravely,” she said in French. “ The 
pain will stop in a few minutes and then F 11 come 
and look after you.” 

He nodded gratefully, still moaning, and she 
hurried to rejoin Mr. Merrick. 

“ Beth must be in the next hollow,” said Uncle 
John as she overtook him, and his voice betrayed 
his nervous tension. “ I do wish you girls would 
not be so reckless.” 

Yes; they found her in the next hollow, where 
several men were grouped about her. She was 
dressing the shattered hand of a soldier, while 
two or three others were patiently awaiting her 
services. Just beside her a sweet-faced Sister of 
Mercy was bending over a dying man, comfort- 
ing him with her prayers. Over the ridge of 
sand could be hear the “ping” of small arms 
mingled with the hoarse roar of machine guns. 
Another great shout — long and enthusiastic — 
was borne to their ears. 

IOI 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ That is good,” said a tall man standing in 
the group about Beth; “ I think, from the sound, 
we have captured their guns.” 

“ I’m sure of it, your Majesty,” replied the one 
whom Beth was attending. “ There ; that will do 
for the present. I thank you. And now, let us 
get forward.” 

As they ran toward the firing Uncle John 
exclaimed : 

“ His Majesty ! I wonder who they are? ” 

“ That,” said a private soldier, an accent of 
pride in his voice, “ is our Albert.” 

“ The king?” 

“ Yes, monsieur; he is the tall one. The other 
is General Mays. I’m sure we have driven the 
Germans back, and that is lucky, for before our 
charge they had come too close for comfort.” 

“ The king gave me a ring,” said Beth, display- 
ing it. “ He seemed glad I was here to help his 
soldiers, but warned me to keep further away 
from the line. King Albert speaks English per- 
fectly and told me he loves America better than 
any other country except his own.” 

“ He has traveled in your country,” explained 


102 


IN THE RED CROSS 


the soldier. “ But then, our Albert has traveled 
everywhere — before he was king.” 

Betwixt them Maud and Beth quickly applied 
first aid to the others in the group and then Uncle 
John said : 

“ Let us take the king’s advice and get back 
to the ambulance. We left only Patsy and Dr. 
Gys there and I’m sure you girls will be needed.” 

On their return they came upon a man sitting 
in a hollow and calmly leaning against a bank of 
sand, smoking a cigarette. He wore a gray 
uniform. 

“Ah, a German!” exclaimed Maud. She ran 
up to him and asked : “ Are you hurt ? ” 

He glanced at her uniform, nodded, and 
pointed to his left foot. It had nearly all been 
tom away below the ankle. A handkerchief was 
twisted about the leg, forming a rude tourniquet 
just above the wound, and this had served to 
stay the flow of blood. 

" Run quickly for the stretcher,” said Maud to 
Uncle John. “ I will stay with him until your 
return.” 

Without a word he hurried away, Beth follow- 
103 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

in g. They found, on reaching the ambulance, 
that Maurie and Jones had been busy. Five of the 
swinging beds were already occupied. 

“ Save the other one,” said Beth. “ Maud has 
found a German.” Then she hurried to assist 
Patsy, as the two doctors had their hands full. 

Jones and Maurie started away with the 
stretcher, Uncle John guiding them to the dunes 
where Maud was waiting, and presently they had 
the wounded German comfortably laid in the last 
bed. 

“ Now, then, back to the ship,” said Gys. 
“ We have in our care two lives, at least, that can 
only be saved by prompt operations.” 

Maurie got into the driver’s seat. 

“ Careful, now! ” cautioned Jones, beside him. 

“Of course,” replied the Belgian, starting the 
motor; “ there are many sores inside. But if they 
get a jolt, now and then, it will serve to remind 
them that they are suffering for their country.” 

He began to back up, for the sand ahead was 
too deep for a turn, and the way he managed the 
huge car along that narrow ridge aroused the 
admiration of A jo, who alone was able to witness 
104 


IN THE RED CROSS 


the marvelous performance. Slowly, with many 
turns, they backed to the road, where Maurie 
swung the ambulance around and then stopped 
with a jerk that drew several groans from the 
interior of the car. 

“ What’s wrong ? ” asked Mr. Merrick, stick- 
ing his head from a window. 

“ We nearly ran over a man,” answered Jones, 
climbing down from his seat. “ Our front wheels 
are right against him, but Maurie stopped in 
time.” 

Lying flat upon his face, diagonally across the 
roadway, was the form of a man in the blue-and- 
red uniform of the Belgian army. Maurie backed 
the ambulance a yard or so as Maud sprang out 
and knelt beside the prostrate form. 

The firing, which had lulled for a few min- 
utes, suddenly redoubled in fury. There rose a 
wild, exultant shout, gradually drawing nearer. 

“ Quick ! ” shouted Gys, trembling and wring- 
ing his hands. “ The Germans are charging. 
Drive on, man — drive on ! ” 

But Maurie never moved. 

“ The Germans are charging, sure enough,” he 
105 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

answered, as the line of retreating Belgians 
became visible. “ But they must stop here, for 
we’ve blocked the road.” 

All eyes but those of Maud were now turned 
upon the fray, which was practically a hand to 
hand conflict. Nearer and nearer came the con- 
fused mass of warriors and then, scarce a hun- 
dred yards away, it halted and the Belgians stood 
firm. 

“ He isn’t dead,” said Maud, coming to the 
car. “ Help me to put him inside.” 

“ There is no room,” protested Gys. 

The girl looked at him scornfully. 

“ We will make room,” she replied. 

A bullet shattered a pane of glass just beside 
the crouching doctor, but passed on through an 
open window without injuring anyone. In fact, 
bullets were singing around them with a freedom 
that made others than Dr. Gys nervous. It was 
chubby little Uncle John who helped Jones carry 
the wounded man to the ambulance, where they 
managed to stretch him upon the floor. This 
arrangement sent Patsy to the front seat outside, 
with Maurie and A jo, although her uncle strongly 
106 


IN THE RED CROSS 


protested that she had no right to expose her 
precious life so wantonly. 

There was little time for argument, however. 
Even as the girl was climbing to her seat the line 
of Belgians broke and came pouring toward them. 
Maurie was prompt in starting the car and the 
next moment the ambulance was rolling swiftly 
along the smooth highway in the direction of 
Dunkirk and the sounds of fray grew faint 
behind them. 


107 


CHAPTER IX 


COURAGE, OR PHILOSOPHY? 

“ I never realized,” said Maud, delightedly, 
“ what a strictly modem, professional hospital 
ship Uncle John has made of this, until we put it 
to practical use. I am sure it is better than those 
makeshifts we observed at Calais, and more com- 
fortable than those crowded hospitals on land. 
Every convenience is at our disposal and if our 
patients do not recover rapidly it will be because 
their condition is desperate.” 

She had just come on deck after a long and 
trying session in assisting Doctors Gys and Kelsey 
to care for the injured, a session during which 
Beth and Patsy had also stood nobly to their 
gruesome task. There were eleven wounded, 
altogether, in their care, and although some of 
these were in a critical condition the doctors had 
insisted that the nurses needed rest. 

“ It is Dr. Gys who deserves credit for fitting 
108 


IN THE RED CROSS 


the ship,” replied Mr. Merrick, modestly, to 
Maud’s enthusiastic comment, “ and Ajo is 
responsible for the ship itself, which seems admir- 
ably suited to our purpose. By the way, how is 
Gys behaving now? Is he still shaking with 
fear?” 

“ No, he seems to have recovered his nerve. 
Isn’t it a terrible affliction ? ” 

“Cowardice? Well, my dear, it is certainly 
an unusual affliction in this country and in these 
times. I have been amazed to-day at the courage 
I have witnessed. These Belgians are certainly 
a brave lot.” 

“ But no braver than the German we brought 
with us,” replied Maud thoughtfully. “ One 
would almost think he had no sensation, yet he 
must be suffering terribly. The doctor will 
amputate the remnants of his foot in an hour or 
so, but the man positively refuses to take an 
anaesthetic.” 

“ Does he speak English or French? ” 

“No; only German. # But Captain Carg under- 
stands German and so he has been acting as our 
interpreter.” 

109 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ How about the Belgian we picked up on the 
road ? ” 

“ He hasn’t recovered consciousness yet. He 
is wounded in the back and in trying to get to the 
rear became insensible from loss of blood.” 

“ From what I saw I wouldn’t suppose any 
Belgian could be wounded in the back,” remarked 
Uncle John doubtfully. 

“ It was a shell,” she said, “ and perhaps 
exploded behind him. It’s a bad wound, Dr. Gys 
says, but if he regains strength he may recover.” 

During this conversation Patsy Doyle was 
lying in her stateroom below and crying bitterly, 
while her cousin Beth strove to soothe her. All 
unused to such horrors as she had witnessed that 
day, the girl had managed to retain her nerve 
by sheer force of will until the Red Cross party 
had returned to the ship and extended first aid 
to the wounded; but the moment Dr. Gys dis- 
missed her she broke down completely. 

Beth was no more accustomed to bloodshed 
than her cousin, but she had anticipated such 
scenes as they had witnessed, inasmuch as her 
year of training as nurse had prepared her for 


no 


IN THE RED CROSS 

them. She had also been a close student of the 
daily press and from her reading had gleaned a 
knowledge of the terrible havoc wrought by this 
great war. Had Patsy not given way, perhaps 
Beth might have done so herself, and really it was 
Maud Stanton who bore the ordeal with the most 
composure. 

After a half hour on deck Maud returned to the 
hospital section quite refreshed, and proceeded to 
care for the patients. She alone assisted Gys 
and Kelsey to amputate the German’s foot, an 
operation the man bore splendidly, quite unaware, 
however, that they had applied local anaesthetics 
to dull the pain. Dr. Gys was a remarkably skill- 
ful surgeon and he gave himself no rest until 
every one of the eleven had received such atten- 
tion as his wounds demanded. Even Kelsey felt 
the strain by that time and as Maud expressed her 
intention of remaining to minister to the wants 
of the crippled soldiers, the two doctors went on 
deck for a smoke and a brief relaxation. 

By this time Beth had quieted Patsy, mainly by 
letting her have her cry out, and now brought her 
on deck to join the others and get the fresh air. 


hi 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

So quickly had events followed one another on 
this fateful day that it was now only four o’clock 
in the afternoon. None of them had thought of 
luncheon, so the ship’s steward now brought tea 
and sandwiches to those congregated on deck. 

As they sat together in a group, drinking tea 
and discussing the exciting events of the day, 
little Maurie came sauntering toward them and 
removed his cap. 

“Your pardon,” said he, “but — are the 
wounded all cared for? ” 

“ As well as we are able to care for them at 
present,” answered Beth. “ And let me thank 
you, Jakob Maurie — let us all thank you — for 
the noble work you did for us to-day.” 

“ Pah! it was nothing,” said he, shifting from 
one foot to another. “ I enjoyed it, mamselle. It 
was such fun to dive into the battle and pull out 
the wounded. It helped them, you see, and it 
gave us a grand excitement. Otherwise, had I 
not gone with you, I would be as ignorant as all 
in Dunkirk still are, for the poor people do not 
yet know what has happened at the front.” 

“We hardly know ourselves what has hap- 


1 12 


IN THE RED CROSS 


pened,” said Uncle John. “We can hear the 
boom of guns yet, even at this distance, and we 
left the battle line flowing back and forth like 
the waves of the ocean. Have a cup of tea, 
Maurie? ” 

The man hesitated. 

“ I do not like to disturb anyone/’ he said 
slowly, “ but if one of the young ladies is dis- 
engaged I would be grateful if she looks at my 
arm.” 

“ Your arm! ” exclaimed Beth, regarding him 
wonderingly as he stood before her. 

Maurie smiled. 

“ It is hardly worth mentioning, mamselle, but 
a bullet — ” 

“ Take off your coat,” she commanded, rising 
from her seat to assist him. 

Maurie complied. His shirt was stained with 
blood. Beth drew out her scissors and cut away 
the sleeve of his left arm. A bullet had passed 
directly through the flesh, but without harming 
bone or muscle. 

“Why didn’t you tell us before?” she asked 
reproachfully. 

113 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ It amounted to so little, beside the other 
hurts you had to attend,” he answered. “ I am 
shamed, mamselle, that I came to you at all. A 
little water and a cloth will make it all right.” 

Patsy had already gone for the water and in 
a few minutes Beth was deftly cleansing the 
wound. 

“How did it happen, Maurie?” asked Jones. 
“ I was with you most of the time and noticed 
nothing wrong. Besides, you said nothing about 
it.” 

“ It was on the road, just as we picked up that 
fallen soldier with the hole in his back. The 
fight jumped toward us pretty quick, you remem- 
ber, and while I sat at the wheel the bullet came. 
I knew when it hit me, but I also knew I could 
move my arm, so what did it matter? I told 
myself to wait till we got to the ship. Had we 
stayed there longer, we might all have stopped 
bullets — and some bullets might have stopped 
us.” He grinned, as if the aphorism amused 
him, and added: “ To know when to run is the 
perfection of courage.” 

“Does it hurt?” asked Uncle John, as Beth 
114 


IN THE RED CROSS 


applied the lint and began winding the bandage. 

“ It reminds me it is there, monsieur ; but I 
will be ready for another trip to-morrow. Thank 
you, mamselle. Instead of the tea, I would like 
a little brandy.” 

“ Give him some in the tea,” suggested Gys, 
noting that Maurie swayed a little. “ Sit down, 
man, and be comfortable. That’s it. I’d give 
a million dollars for your nerve.” 

“ Have you so much money?” asked Maurie. 

“ No.” 

“ Then I cannot see that you lack nerve,” said 
the little Belgian thoughtfully. “ I was watching 
you to-day, M’sieur Doctor, and I believe what 
you lack is courage.” 

Gys stared so hard at him with the one good 
eye that even Maurie became embarrassed and 
turned away his head. Sipping his tea and 
brandy he presently resumed, in a casual tone : 

“ Never have I indulged in work of more 
interest than this. We go into the thick of the 
fight, yet are we safe from harm. We do good 
to both sides, because the men who do the fight- 
ing are not to blame for the war, at all. The 
ii5 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

leaders of politics say to the generals : “ We have 
declared war; go and fight.’ The generals say 
to the soldiers : ‘We are told to fight, so come 
on. We do not know why, but it is our duty, 
because it is our profession. So go and die, or 
get shot to pieces, or lose some arms and legs, 
as it may happen.’ The business of the soldiers 
is to obey ; they must back up the policies of their 
country, right or wrong. But do those who send 
them into danger ever get hurt? Not to the 
naked eye.” 

“ Why, you’re quite a philosopher, Maurie,” 
said Patsy. 

“ It is true,” agreed the Belgian. “ But 
philosophy is like courage — easy to assume. We 
strut and talk big; we call the politicians sharks, 
the soldiers fools ; but does it do any good ? The 
war will go on; the enemy will destroy our 
homes, separate our families, take away our bread 
and leave us to starve ; but we have the privilege 
to philosophize, if we like. For myself, I thank 
them for nothing! ” 

“ I suppose you grieve continually for your 
wife,” said Patsy. 

116 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Not so much that, mamselle, but I know she 
is grieving for me,” he replied. 

“ As soon as we find time,” continued the girl, 
“ we intend to search for your wife and children. 
I am sure we can find them for you.” 

Maurie moved uneasily in his chair. 

“ I beg you to take no trouble on my account,” 
said he. “With the Red Cross you have great 
work to accomplish. What is the despair of one 
poor Walloon to you? ” 

“ It is a great deal to us, Maurie,” returned 
the girl, earnestly. “You have been a friend 
in need ; without you we could not have made our 
dash to the front to-day. We shall try to repay 
you by finding your wife.” 

He was silent, but his troubled look told of 
busy thoughts. 

“ What does she look like ? ” inquired Beth. 
“ Have you her photograph ? ” 

“No; she would not make a good picture, 
mamselle,” he answered with a sigh. “ Clarette 
is large; she is fat; she has a way of scowling 
when one does not bring in more wood than the 
'fire can eat up ; and she is very religious.” 
ii 7 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ With that description I am sure we can find 
her,” cried Patsy enthusiastically. 

He seemed disturbed. 

“ If you please,” said he plaintively, “ Clarette 
is quite able to take care of herself. She has a 
strong will.” 

“ But if you know she is safe it will relieve 
your anxiety,” suggested Beth. “ You told us 
yesterday you had been searching everywhere 
for her.” 

“ If I said everywhere, I was wrong, for poor 
Clarette must be somewhere. And since yester- 
day I have been thinking with more deliberation, 
and I have decided,” he added, his tone becom- 
ing confidential, “ that it is better I do not find 
Clarette just now. It might destroy my useful- 
ness to the Red Cross.” 

“ But your children ! ” protested Patsy. 
“ Surely you cannot rest at ease with your two 
dear children wandering about, in constant 
danger.” 

“ To be frank, mamselle,” said he, “ they are 
not my children. I had a baby, but it was killed, 
as I told you. The boy and girl I have men- 
118 


IN THE RED CROSS 

tioned were born when Clarette was the wife of 
another man — a blacksmith at Dinant — who 
had a sad habit of beating her.” 

“ But you love the little ones, I am sure.” 

He shook his head. 

“ They have somewhat the temper of their 
father, the blacksmith. I took them when I took 
Clarette — just as I took the silver spoons and 
the checkered tablespread she brought with her 
— but now that a cruel fate has separated me 
from the children, perhaps it is all for the best.” 

The doctor gave a snort of disgust, while A jo 
smiled. The girls were too astonished to pursue 
the conversation, but now realized that Maurie’s 
private affairs did not require their good offices 
to untangle. Uncle John was quite amused at 
the Belgian’s confession and was the only one to 
reply. 

“ Fate often seems cruel when she is in her 
happiest mood,” said he. “ Perhaps, Maurie, 
your Clarette will come to you without your 
seeking her, for all Belgium seems headed toward 
France just now. What do you think ? Will the 
Germans capture Dunkirk?” 

119 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

The man brightened visibly at this turn in the 
conversation. 

“ Not to-day, sir; not for days to come,” he 
replied. “ The French cannot afford to lose 
Dunkirk, and by to-morrow they will pour an 
irresistible horde against the German invader. 
If we stay here, we are sure to remain in the 
rear of the firing line.” 


120 


CHAPTER X 

THE WAR’S VICTIMS 

While the others were conversing on deck 
Maud Stanton was ministering to the maimed 
victims of the war’s cruelty, who tossed and 
moaned below. The main cabin and its accom- 
panying staterooms had been fitted with all the 
conveniences of a modem hospital. Twenty-two 
could easily be accommodated in the rooms and 
a dozen more in the cabin, so that the eleven now 
in their charge were easily cared for. Of these, 
only three had been seriously injured. One was 
the German, who, however, was now sleeping 
soundly under the influence of the soothing po- 
tion that followed his operation. The man’s 
calmness and iron nerve indicated that he would 
make a rapid recovery. Another was the young 
Belgian soldier picked up in the roadway near 
the firing line, who had been shot in the back and 
had not yet recovered consciousness. Dr. Gys 


121 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

had removed several bits of exploded shell and 
dressed the wound, shaking his head discourag- 
ingly. But since the young man was still breath- 
ing, with a fairly regular respiration, no attempt 
was made to restore him to his senses. 

The third seriously injured was a French 
sergeant whose body was literally riddled with 
shrapnel. A brief examination had convinced 
Gys that the case was hopeless. 

“ He may live until morning,” was the doctor’s 
report as he calmly looked down upon the moan- 
ing sergeant, “ but no longer. Meanwhile, we 
must prevent his suffering.” 

This he accomplished by means of powerful 
drugs. The soldier .soon lay in a stupor, await- 
ing the end, and nothing more could be done for 
him. 

Of the others, two Belgians with bandaged 
heads were playing a quiet game of ecarte in a 
comer of the cabin, while another with a slight 
wound in his leg was stretched upon a couch, 
reading a book. A young French officer who had 
lost three fingers of his hand was cheerfully con- 
versing with a comrade whose scalp had been 


122 


IN THE RED CROSS 


torn by a bullet and who declared that in two 
days he would return to the front. The others 
Maud found asleep in their berths or lying 
quietly to ease their pain. It was remarkable, 
however, how little suffering was caused these 
men by flesh wounds, once they were properly 
dressed and the patients made comfortable with 
food and warmth and the assurance of proper 
care. 

So it was that Maud found her duties not at 
all arduous this evening. Indeed, the sympathy 
she felt for these brave men was so strong that 
it wearied her more than the actual work of 
nursing them. A sip of water here, a cold com- 
press there, the administration of medicines to 
keep down or prevent fever, little attentions of 
this character were all that were required. Speak- 
ing French fluently, she was able to converse with 
all those under her charge and all seemed eager 
to relate to their beautiful nurse their experiences, 
hopes and griefs. Soon she realized she was 
beginning to learn more of the true nature of war 
than she had ever gleaned from the correspond- 
ents of the newspapers. 

123 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

When dinner was served in the forward cabin 
Beth relieved Maud and after the evening meal 
Dr. Gys made another inspection of his patients. 
All seemed doing well except the young Belgian. 
The condition of the French sergeant was still 
unchanged. Some of those with minor injuries 
were ordered on deck for a breath of fresh air. 

Patsy relieved Beth at midnight and Maud 
came on duty again at six o’clock, having had 
several hours of refreshing sleep. She found 
Patsy trembling with nervousness, for the ser- 
geant had passed away an hour previous and the 
horror of the event had quite upset the girl. 

“ Oh, it is all so unnecessary ! ” she wailed as 
she threw herself into Maud’s arms. 

“ We must steel ourselves to such things, dear,” 
said Maud, soothing her, “ for they will be of 
frequent occurrence, I fear. And we must be 
grateful and glad that we were able to relieve the 
poor man’s anguish and secure for him a peace- 
ful end.” 

“ I know,” answered Patsy with a little sob, 
“ but it’s so dreadful. Oh, what a cruel, hateful 
thing war is ! ” 


124 


IN THE RED CROSS 


From papers found on the sergeant Uncle 
John was able to notify his relatives of his fate. 
His home was in a little village not fifty miles 
away and during the day a brother arrived to 
take charge of the remains and convey them to 
their last resting place. 

The following morning Captain Carg was 
notified by the authorities to withdraw the Ara- 
bella to an anchorage farther out in the bay, and 
thereafter it became necessary to use the two 
launches for intercourse between the ship and the 
city. Continuous cannonading could be heard 
from the direction of Nieuport, Dixmude and 
Ypres, and it was evident that the battle had 
doubled in intensity at all points, owing to heavy 
reinforcements being added to both sides. But, 
as Maurie had predicted, the Allies were able to 
hold the foe at bay and keep them from advanc- 
ing a step farther. 

Uncle John had not been at all satisfied with 
that first day’s experience at the front. He 
firmly believed it was unwise, to the verge of 
rashness, to allow the girls to place themselves in 
so dangerous a position. During a serious con- 

125 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

sultation with Jones, Kelsey, Captain Carg and 
Dr. Gys, the men agreed upon a better plan of 
procedure. 

“ The three nurses have plenty to do in attend- 
ing to the patients in our hospital,” said Gys, 
“ and when the ship has its full quota of wounded 
they will need assistance or they will break down 
under the strain. Our young ladies are different 
from the professional nurses; they are so keenly 
sensitive that they suffer from sympathy with 
every patient that comes under their care.” 

“ I do not favor their leaving the ship,” re- 
marked Dr. Kelsey, the mate. “ There seems 
to be plenty of field workers at the front, sup- 
plied by the governments whose troops are 
fighting.” 

“ Therefore,” added Jones, “ we men must 
assume the duty of driving the ambulances and 
bringing back the wounded we are able to pick 
up. As Maurie is too stiff from his wound to 
drive to-day, I shall undertake the job myself. I 
know the way, now, and am confident I shall get 
along nicely. Who will go with me ? ” 

“ I will, of course,” replied Kelsey quietly. 

126 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Doctor Gys will be needed on the ship,” 
asserted Uncle John. 

“ Yes, it will be best to leave me here,” said 
Gys. “ I’m too great a coward to go near the 
firing line again. It destroys my usefulness, and 
Kelsey can administer first aid as well as I.” 

“ In that case, I think I shall take the small 
ambulance to-day,” decided A jo. “ With Dr. 
Kelsey and one of the sailors we shall manage 
very well.” 

A launch took them ashore, where the ambu- 
lances stood upon the dock. Maurie had 
admitted his inability to drive, but asked to be 
allowed to go into the town. So he left the ship 
with the others and disappeared for the day. 

Ajo took the same route he had covered 
before, in the direction of Nieuport, but could not 
get within five miles of the town, which was 
now held by the Germans. From Furnes to the 
front the roads were packed with reinforcements 
and wagon trains bearing ammunition and sup- 
plies, and further progress with the ambulance 
was impossible. 

However, -a constant stream of wounded 
127 


AUNT JANE'S NIECES 

flowed to the rear, some with first aid bandages 
covering their injuries, others as yet uncared for. 
Kelsey chose those whom he considered most in 
need of surgical care or skillful nursing, and by 
noon the ambulance was filled to overflowing. It 
was Jones who advised taking none of the fat- 
ally injured, as the army surgeons paid especial 
attention to these. The Americans could be of 
most practical use, the boy considered, by taking 
in charge such as had a chance to recover. So 
nine more patients were added to the ship’s col- 
ony on this occasion, all being delivered to the 
care of Dr. Gys without accident or delay — a 
fact that rendered Ajo quite proud of his skillful 
driving. 

While the ambulance was away the girls 
quietly passed from berth to berth, encouraging 
and caring for their wounded. It was surprising 
how interested they became in the personality of 
these soldiers, for each man was distinctive either 
in individuality or the character of his injury, 
and most of them were eager to chat with their 
nurses and anxious for news of the battle. 

During the morning the young Belgian who 
128 


IN THE RED CROSS 


had lain until now in a stupor, recovered con- 
sciousness. He had moaned once or twice, draw- 
ing Maud to his side, but hearing a different 
sound from him she approached the berth where 
he lay, to find his eyes wide open. Gradually he 
turned them upon his nurse, as if feeling her 
presence, and after a moment of observation he 
sighed and then smiled wanly. 

“ Still on earth? ” he said in French. 

“ I am so glad,” she replied. “ You have been 
in dreamland a long time.” 

He tried to move and it brought a moan to his 
lips. 

“ Don’t stir,” she counseled warningly; “ you 
are badly wounded.” 

He was silent for a time, staring at the ceiling. 
She held some water to his lips and he drank 
eagerly. Finally he said in a faint voice : 

“ I remember, now. I had turned to reload 
and it hit me in the back. A bullet, 
mademoiselle ? ” 

“ Part of a shell.” 

“ Ah, I understand. ... I tried to 
get to the rear. The pain was terrible. No one 
129 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

seemed to notice me. At last I fell, and — then 
I slept. I thought it was the end.” 

She bathed his forehead, saying: 

“ You must not talk any more at present. Here 
comes the doctor to see you.” 

Gys, busy in the cabin, had heard their voices 
and now came to look at his most interesting 
patient. The soldier seemed about twenty years 
of age; he was rather handsome, with expressive 
eyes and features bearing the stamp of culture. 
Already they knew his name, by means of an 
identification card found upon him, as well as a 
small packet of letters carefully pinned in an 
inner pocket of his coat. These last were all 
addressed in the same handwriting, which was 
undoubtedly feminine, to Andrew Denton. The 
card stated that Andrew Denton, private, was 
formerly an insurance agent at Antwerp. 

Doctor Gys had rather impatiently awaited the 
young man’s return to consciousness that he 
might complete his examination. He now de- 
voted the next half hour to a careful diagnosis 
of Denton’s injuries. By this time the patient 
was suffering intense pain and a hypodermic 
130 


IN THE RED CROSS 


injection of morphine was required to relieve him. 
When at last he was quietly drowsing the doctor 
called Maud aside to give her instructions. 

“ Watch him carefully,” said he, “ and don't 
let him suffer. Keep up the morphine.” 

“ There is no hope, then ? ” she asked. 

“ Not the slightest. He may linger for days 
— even weeks, if we sustain his strength — but 
recovery is impossible. That bit of shell tore a 
horrible hole in the poor fellow and all we can 
do is keep him comfortable until the end. With- 
out the morphine he would not live twelve hours.” 

“ Shall I let him talk?” 

“ If he wishes to. His lungs are not involved, 
so it can do him no harm.” 

But Andrew Denton did not care to talk any 
more that day. He wanted to think, and lay 
quietly until Beth came on duty. To her he gave 
a smile and a word of thanks and again lapsed 
into thoughtful silence. 

When A jo brought the new consignment of 
wounded to the ship the doctors and nurses 
found themselves pretty busy for a time. With 
wounds to dress and one or two slight operations 
I3i 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

to perform, the afternoon passed swiftly away. 
The old patients must not be neglected, either, so 
Captain Carg said he would sit with the German 
and look after him, as he was able to converse 
with the patient in his own tongue. 

The German was resting easily to-day but 
proved as glum and uncommunicative as ever. 
That did not worry the captain, who gave the 
man a cigarette and, when it was nonchalantly 
accepted, lighted his own pipe. Together they 
sat in silence and smoked, the German occupying 
an easy chair and resting his leg upon a stool, 
for he had refused to lie in a berth. Through 
the open window the dull boom of artillery could 
constantly be heard. After an hour or so : 

“A long fight,” remarked the captain in 
German. 

The other merely looked at him, contempla- 
tively. Carg stared for five minutes at the 
bandaged foot. Finally : 

“ Hard luck,” said he. 

This time the German nodded, looking at the 
foot also. 

“ In America,” resumed the captain, puffing 
132 


IN THE RED CROSS 


slowly, “ they make fine artificial feet. Walk all 
right. Look natural.” 

“Vienna,” said the German. 

“ Yes, I suppose so.” Another pause. 

“Name?” asked the German, with startling 
abruptness. But the other never winked. 

“ Carg. I’m a sailor. Captain of this ship. 
Live in Sangoa, when ashore.” 

“ Sangoa ? ” 

“ Island in South Seas.” 

The wounded man reached for another ciga- 
rette and lighted it. 

“Carg,” he repeated, musingly. “German?” 

“ Why, my folks were, I believe. I’ve relations 
in Germany, yet. Munich. Visited them once, 
when a boy. Mother’s name was Elbl. The 
Cargs lived next door to the Elbls. But they’ve 
lost track of me, and I of them. Nothing in 
common, you see.” 

The German finished his cigarette, looking at 
the captain at times reflectively. Carg, feeling 
his biography had not been appreciated, had 
lapsed into silence. At length the wounded man 
began feeling in his breast pocket — an awkward 
133 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

operation because the least action disturbed the 
swathed limb — and presently drew out a leather 
card case. With much deliberation he abstracted 
a card and handed it to the captain, who put on 
his spectacles and read: 

“ Otto Elbl. 1 2th Uhlans” 

“ Oh,” he said, looking up to examine the 
German anew. “ Otto Elbl of Munich?” 

“ Yes.” 

“ H-m. Number 121 Friedrichstrasse? ” 

“ Yes.” 

“ I didn’t see you when I visited your family. 
They said you were at college. Your father was 
William Elbl, my mother’s brother.” 

The German stretched out his hand and 
gripped the fist of the captain. 

“ Cousins,” he said. 

Carg nodded, meditating. 

“ To be sure,” he presently returned; “ cousins. 
Have another cigarette.” 


134 


CHAPTER XI 


PATSY IS DEFIANT 

That evening the captain joined Dr. Gys on 
deck. 

“ That German, Lieutenant Elbl,” he began. 

“ Oh, is that his name ? ” asked Gys. 

“Yes. Will he get well ?” 

“ Certainly. What is a foot, to a man like 
him? But his soldiering days are past.” 

“ Perhaps that’s fortunate,” returned the cap- 
tain, ruminatively. “ When I was a boy, his 
father was burgomaster — mayor — in Munich. 
People said he was well-to-do. The Germans are 
thrifty, so I suppose there’s still money in the 
Elbl family.” 

“ Money will do much to help reconcile the 
man to the loss of his foot,” declared the doctor. 

“ Will he suffer much pain, while it is getting 
well?” 

“Not if I can help it. The fellow bears pain 
135 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

with wonderful fortitude. When I was in Yuca- 
tan, and had to slash my face to get out the 
poisoned darts of the cactus, I screamed till you 
could have heard me a mile. And I had no 
anaesthetic to soothe me. Your lieutenant never 
whimpered or cringed with his mangled foot and 
he refused morphine when I operated on it. But 
I fooled him. I hate to see a brave man suffer. 
I stuck a needle just above the wound when he 
wasn’t looking, and I’ve doped his medicine ever 
since.” 

“Thank you,” said Carg; “he’s my cousin.” 

In the small hours of the next morning, while 
Patsy was on duty in the hospital section, the 
young Belgian became wakeful and restless. She 
promptly administered a sedative and sat by his 
bedside. After a little his pain was eased and he 
became quiet, but he lay there with wide open eyes. 

“ Can I do anything more for you ? ” she 
asked. 

“If you would be so kind,” replied Andrew 
Denton. 

“Well?” 


136 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Please read to me some letters you will find 
in my pocket. I cannot read them myself, and 
— they will comfort me.” 

Patsy found the packet of letters. 

“ The top one first,” he said eagerly. “ Read 
them all ! ” 

She opened the letter reluctantly. It was 
addressed in a dainty, female hand and the girl 
had the uncomfortable feeling that she was 
about to pry into personal relations of a delicate 
character. 

“ Your sweetheart? ” she asked gently. 

“ Yes, indeed; my sweetheart and my wife.” 

“ Oh, I see. And have you been married 
long ? ” He seemed a mere boy. 

“ Five months, but for the last two I have not 
seen her.” 

The letters were dated at Charleroi and each 
one began : “ My darling husband.” Patsy read 
the packet through, from first to last, her eyes 
filling with tears at times as she noted the rare 
devotion and passionate longing of the poor 
young wife and realized that the boyish husband 
was even now dying, a martyr to his country’s 
137 


AUNT JANE'S NIECES 

cause. The letters were signed “ Elizabeth." In 
one was a small photograph of a sweet, dark- 
eyed girl whom she instantly knew to be the 
bereaved wife. 

“ And does she still live at Charleroi ? ” Patsy 
asked. 

“ I hope so, mademoiselle ; with her mother. 
The Germans now occupy the town, but you will 
notice the last letter states that all citizens are 
treated courteously and with much consideration, 
so I do not fear for her." 

The reading of the letters, in conjunction with 
the opiate, seemed to comfort him, for presently 
he fell asleep. With a heavy heart the girl left 
him to attend to her other patients and at three 
o’clock A jo came in and joined her, to relieve 
the tedium of the next three hours. The boy 
knew nothing of nursing, but he could help Patsy 
administer potions and change compresses and 
his presence was a distinct relief to her. 

The girl was supposed to sleep from six o’clock 
— at which time she was relieved from duty — 
until one in the afternoon, but the next morning 
at eight she walked into the forward salon, where 

133 


IN THE RED CROSS 


her friends were at breakfast, and sat down be- 
side Uncle John. 

“ I could not sleep,” said she, “ because I am 
so worried over Andrew Denton.” 

“ That is foolish, my dear,” answered Mr. 
Merrick, affectionately patting the hand she laid 
in his. “ The doctor says poor Denton cannot 
recover. If you’re going to take to heart all the 
sad incidents we encounter on this hospital ship, 
it will not only ruin your usefulness but destroy 
your happiness.” 

“ Exactly so,” agreed Gys, coming into the 
salon in time to overhear this remark. “ A nurse 
should be sympathetic, but impersonally so.” 

“ Denton has been married but five months,” 
said Patsy. “I have seen his wife’s picture — 
she’s a dear little girl ! — and her letters to him 
are full of love and longing. She doesn’t know, 
of course, of his — his accident — or that he — 
he — ” Her voice broke with a sob she could 
not repress. 

“ M-m,” purred Uncle John; “ where does she 
live, this young wife? ” 

“ At Charleroi.” 


139 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ Well; the Germans are there.” 

“ Yes, Uncle. But don’t you suppose they 
would let her come to see her dying husband ? ” 

“ A young girl, unprotected? Would it be — 
safe? ” 

“ The Germans,” remarked Captain Carg from 
his end of the table, “ are very decent people.” 

“ Ahem! ” said Uncle John. 

“ Some of them, I’ve no doubt, are quite 
respectable,” observed Ajo; “ but from all reports 
the rank and file, in war time, are — rather 
unpleasant to meet.” 

“ Precisely,” agreed Uncle John. “ I think, 
Patsy dear, it will be best to leave this Belgian 
girl in ignorance of her husband’s fate.” 

“ I, myself, have a wife,” quoth little Maurie, 
with smug assurance, “ but she is not worrying 
about me, wherever she may be; nor do I feel 
especial anxiety for Clarette. A woman takes 
what comes — especially if she is obliged to.” 

Patsy regarded him indignantly. 

“ There are many kinds of women,” she began. 

“ Thank heaven ! ” exclaimed Maurie, and then 
she realized how futile it was to argue with him. 

140 


IN THE RED CROSS 

A little later she walked on deck with Uncle 
John and pleaded her cause earnestly. It was 
said by those who knew him well that the kindly 
little gentleman was never able to refuse Patsy 
anything for long, and he was himself so well 
aware of this weakness that he made a supreme 
effort to resist her on this occasion. 

“ You and I,” said she, “ would have no trouble 
in passing the German lines. We are strictly 
neutral, you know, we Americans, and our pass- 
ports and the Red Cross will take us anywhere 
in safety. ,, 

“ It won’t do, my dear,” he replied. “ You’ve 
already been in danger enough for one war. I 
shudder even now as I think of those bullets 
and shells at Nieuport.” 

“ But we can pass through at some place where 
they are not fighting.” 

“ Show me such a place ! ” 

“ And distances are very small in this part of 
the Continent. We could get to Charleroi in a 
day, and return the next day with Mrs. Denton.” 

“ Impossible.” 

“ The doctor says he may live for several days, 
141 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

but it may be only for hours. If you could see 
his face light up when he speaks of her, you 
would realize what a comfort her presence would 
be to him.” 

“ I understand that, Patsy. But can’t you see, 
my dear, that we’re not able to do everything for 
those poor wounded soldiers? You have twenty 
in your charge now, and by to-night there may 
be possibly a dozen more. Many of them have 
wives at home, but — ” 

“ But all are not dying, Uncle — and after 
only five months of married life, three of which 
they passed together. Here, at least, is one brave 
heart we may comfort, one poor woman who will 
be ever grateful for our generous kindness.” 

Mr. Merrick coughed. He wiped his eyes and 
blew his nose on his pink bordered handkerchief. 
But he made no promise. 

Patsy left him and went to A jo. 

“ See here,” she said ; “ I’m going to Charleroi 
in an hour.” 

“ It’s a day’s journey, Patsy.” 

“ I mean I’m going to start in an hour. Will 
you go with me?” 


142 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“What does Uncle John say?” he inquired 
cautiously. 

“ I don’t care what he says. I’m going! ” she 
persisted, her eyes blazing with determination. 

The boy whistled softly, studying her face. 
Then he walked across the deck to Mr. Merrick. 

“ Patsy is rampant, sir,” said he. “ She won’t 
be denied. Go and argue with her, please.” 

“ I have argued,” returned Uncle John weakly. 

“ Well, argue again.” 

The little man cast a half frightened, half 
reproachful glance at his niece. 

“ Let’s go and consult the doctor,” he 
exclaimed, and together Uncle John and Ajo went 
below. 

To their surprise, Gys supported Patsy’s plea. 

“ He’s a fine fellow, this Denton,” said he, 
“ and rather above the average soldier. More- 
over, his case is a pitiful one. I’ll agree to keep 
him alive until his wife comes.” 

Uncle John looked appealingly at Ajo. 

“ How on earth can we manage to cross the 
lines? ” he asked. 

“Take one of our launches,” said the boy. 

143 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ Skim the coast to Ostend, and you’ll avoid 
danger altogether.” 

“ That’s the idea ! ” exclaimed the doctor ap- 
provingly. “ Why, it’s the easiest thing in the 
world, sir.” 

Uncle John began to feel slightly reassured. 

“ Who will run the launch ? ” he inquired. 

“ I’ll give you the captain and one of the men,” 
said the boy. “ Carg’s an old traveler and knows 
more than he appears to. Besides, he speaks 
German. We can’t spare very many, you under- 
stand, and the ambulances will keep Maurie and 
me pretty busy. Patsy will be missed, too, from 
the hospital ward, so you must hurry back.” 

“ Two days ought to accomplish our object,” 
said Uncle John. 

“ Easily,” agreed Gys. “ I’ve arranged for a 
couple of girls from the town to come and help 
us to-day, for I must save the strength of my 
expert nurses as much as possible, and I’ll keep 
them with us until you return. The French girls 
are not experienced in nursing, but I’ll take Miss 
Patsy’s watch myself, so we shall get along all 
right.” 


144 


IN THE RED CROSS 


Mr. Merrick and Jones returned to the deck. 
“Well?” demanded Patsy. 

“Get ready,” said Uncle John; “we leave in 
an hour.” 

“For Charleroi?” 

“Of course; unless you’ve changed your 
mind.” 

Patsy flew to her stateroom. 


145 


CHAPTER XII 


THE OTHER SIDE 

The launch in which they embarked bore the 
Red Cross on its sides, and an American flag 
floated from the bow and a Red Cross flag from 
the stern. Its four occupants wore the Red Cross 
uniforms. Yet three miles out of Dunkirk a 
shot came singing across their prow and they 
were obliged to lay to until a British man-of-war 
could lower a boat to investigate their errand. 
The coast is very shallow in this section, which 
permits boats of only the lightest draught to 
navigate in-shore, but the launch was able to skim 
over the surface at twelve miles an hour. 

“ This is pleasant!” grumbled Uncle John, as 
they awaited the approach of the warship’s boat. 
“ Our very appearance ought to insure us safe 
conduct, but I suppose that in these times every 
craft is regarded with suspicion.” 

The boat came alongside. 

146 


IN THE RED CROSS 

“ Where are you going? ” demanded an officer, 
gruffly. 

“ To Ostend.” 

“ On what business? ” 

“ Our own,” replied Mr. Merrick. 

“ Be respectful, sir, or I’ll arrest your entire 
outfit,” warned the officer. 

“ You’ll do nothing of the sort,” declared Mr. 
Merrick. “ You’ll examine our papers, apologize 
for your interference and row back to your ship. 
We have the authority of the Red Cross to go 
wherever our duty calls us, and moreover we’re 
American citizens. Permit me to add that we’re 
in a hurry.” 

The officer turned first white and then red, but 
he appreciated the force of the argument. 

“ Your papers ! ” he commanded. 

Uncle John produced them and waited 
ipatiently for their inspection, which was very 
deliberate. Finally the officer returned them and 
gave the order to his men to row back to the 
ship. 

“One moment!” called Uncle John. “You 
haven’t made the apology.” 

147 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

There was no answer. The boat moved swiftly 
away and at a gesture from Captain Carg the 
jsailor started the launch again. 

“ I wonder why it is,” mused Mr. Merrick, 
“ that there is always this raspy feeling when the 
English meet Americans. On the surface we’re 
friendly enough and our governments always ex- 
press in diplomatic relations the most cordial 
good will ; but I’ve always noticed in the English 
individual an undercurrent of antipathy for 
Americans that cannot be disguised. As a race 
the English hate us. I’m positive, and I wonder 
why ? ” 

“ I believe you’re wrong, Uncle,” remarked 
Patsy. “ A few of the British may individually 
dislike us, but I’m sure the two nations are not 
antagonistic. Why should they be? ” 

“ Yorktown,” muttered the captain. 

“ I don’t believe it,” declared the girl. 
“ They’re too good sportsmen to bear grudges.” 

“ All the same,” persisted Uncle John, “ the 
English have never favored us as the French 
have, or even the Russians.” 

From Dunkirk to Ostend, by the coast line, is 
148 


IN THE RED CROSS 


only some twenty-five miles, yet although they 
started at a little after eleven o’clock it was three 
in the afternoon before they finally landed at the 
Belgian seaport. Interruptions were numerous, 
and although they were treated courteously, in 
the main, it was only after rigid questioning and 
a thorough examination that they were per- 
mitted to proceed. A full hour was consumed at 
the harbor at Ostend before they could even land. 

As they stepped upon the wharf a group of 
German soldiers met them and now Captain Carg 
became the spokesman of the party. The young 
officer in command removed his helmet to bow 
deferentially to Patsy and then turned to ask their 
business at Ostend. 

“ He says we must go before the military gov- 
ernor,” said Carg, translating. “ There, if our 
papers are regular, permits will be issued for us 
to proceed to Charleroi.” 

They left the sailor in charge of the launch, 
which was well provisioned and contained a con- 
vertible bunk, and fpllowed the officer into the 
town. Ostend is a large city, fortified, and was 
formerly one of the most important ports on the 
149 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

North Sea, as well as a summer resort of prom- 
inence. The city now being occupied by the 
Germans, our friends found few citizens on the 
streets of Ostend and these hurried nervously on 
their way. The streets swarmed with German 
soldiery. 

Arriving at headquarters they found that the 
commandant was too busy to attend to the Red 
Cross Americans. He ordered them taken before 
Colonel Grau for examination. 

“ But why examine us at all? ” protested Mr. 
Merrick. “ Doesn’t our sacred mission protect 
us from such annoying details ? ” 

The young officer regretted that it did not. 
They would find Colonel Grau in one of the 
upper rooms. It would be a formal examination, 
of course, and brief. But busy spies had even 
assumed the insignia of the Red Cross to mask 
their nefarious work and an examination was 
therefore necessary as a protective measure. So 
they ascended a broad staircase and proceeded 
along a corridor to the colonel’s office. 

Grau was at the head of the detective service 
at Ostend and invested with the task of ferreting 
150 


IN THE RED CROSS 


out the numerous spies in the service of the Allies 
and dealing with them in a summary manner. 
He was a very stout man, and not very tall. His 
eyes were light blue and his grizzled mustache 
was a poor imitation of that affected by the 
Kaiser. When Grau looked up, on their en- 
trance, Patsy decided that their appearance had 
startled him, but presently she realized that the 
odd expression was permanent. 

In a chair beside the colonel’s desk sat, or 
rather lounged, another officer, encased in a uni- 
form so brilliant that it arrested the eye before 
one could discover its contents. These were a 
wizened, weather-beaten man of advanced age, 
yet rugged as hickory. His eyes had a periodical 
squint ; his brows wore a persistent frown. There 
was a broad scar on his left cheek and another 
across his forehead. A warrior who had seen 
service, probably, but whose surly physiognomy 
was somewhat disconcerting. 

The two officers had been in earnest conversa- 
tion, but when Mr. Merrick’s party was ushered 
in, the elder man leaned back in his chair, squint- 
ing and scowling, and regarded them silently. 
I5i 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ Huh ! ” exclaimed the colonel, in a brusque 
growl. “ What is it, von Holtz ? ” 

The young officer explained that the party had 
just arrived from Dunkirk in a launch; the com- 
mandant had asked Colonel Grau kindly to ex- 
amine them. Uncle John proceeded to state the 
case, Captain Carg interpreting. They operated 
a Red Cross hospital ship at Dunkirk, and one of 
their patients, a young Belgian, was dying of his 
wounds. They had come to find his young wife 
and take her back with them to Dunkirk in their 
launch, that she might comfort the last moments 
of her husband. The Americans asked for safe 
conduct to Charleroi, and permission to take Mrs. 
Denton with them to Dunkirk. Then he pre- 
sented his papers, including the authority of the 
American Red Cross Society, the letter from the 
secretary of state and the recommendation of the 
German ambassador at Washington. 

The colonel looked them all over. He uttered 
little guttural exclamations and tapped the desk 
with his finger-tips as he read, and all the time 
his face wore that perplexing expression of sur- 
prise. Finally he asked: 

152 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Which is Mr. Merrick ? ” 

Hearing his name, Uncle John bowed. 

“ Huh ! But the description does not fit you.” 

Captain Carg translated this. 

“ Why not? ” demanded Uncle John. 

“ It says you are short, stout, blue-eyed, bald, 
forty-five years of age.” 

“ Of course.” 

“ You are not short; I think you are as tall as 
I am. Your eyes are not blue; they are olive 
green. You are not bald, for there is still hair 
over your ears. Huh! How do you explain 
that?” 

“ It’s nonsense,” said Uncle John scornfully. 

Carg was more cautious in interpreting the re- 
mark. He assured the colonel, in German, that 
the description of Mr. Merrick was considered 
close enough for all practical purposes. But 
Grau was not satisfied. He went over the papers 
again and then turned to face the other officer. 

“ What do you think, General?” he asked, 
hesitatingly. 

“ Suspicious ! ” was the reply. 

“ I think so, myself,” said the colonel. “ Mark 
153 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

you: Here’s a man who claims to come from 
Sangoa, a place no one has ever heard of; and 
the other has endorsements purporting to come 
from the highest officials in America. Huh! 
what does it mean ? ” 

“ Papers may be forged, or stolen from their 
proper owners,” suggested the squinting general. 
“ This excuse of coming here to get the wife of 
a hurt Belgian seems absurd. If they are really 
Red Cross workers, they are not attending to 
their proper business.” 

When the captain interpreted this speech Patsy 
said angrily: 

“ The general is an old fool.” 

“An idiot, I’ll call him,” added Uncle John. 
“ I wish I could tell him so.” 

“ You have told him,” said the general in good 
English, squinting now more rapidly than ever, 
“ and your manner of speech proves you to be im- 
postors. I have never known a respectable Red 
Cross nurse, erf any country, who calkd a dis- 
tinguished officer a fool — and to his face.” 

“ I didn’t know you understood English,” she 
said. 


154 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ That is no excuse ! ” 

“ But I did know,” she added, “ that I had 
judged you correctly. No one with a spark of 
intelligence could doubt the evidence of these 
papers.” 

“ The papers are all right. Where did you 
get them ? ” 

“ From the proper authorities.” 

He turned to speak rapidly in German to 
Colonel Grau, who had been uneasy during the 
conversation in English, because he failed to 
understand it. His expression of piquant sur- 
prise was intensified as he now turned to the 
Americans. 

“ You may as well confess your imposture,” 
said he. “ It will make your punishment lighter. 
However, if on further examination you prove 
to be spies, your fate is beyond my power to 
mitigate.” 

“ See here,” said Uncle John, when this was 
translated to him, “ if you dare to interfere with 
us, or cause us annoyance, I shall insist on your 
being courtmartialed. You are responsible to 
your superiors, I suppose, and they dare not 
155 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

tolerate an insult to the Red Cross, nor to an 
American citizen. You may have the sense to 
consider that if these papers and letters are genu- 
ine, as I declare they are, I have friends powerful 
enough to bring this matter before the Kaiser 
himself, in which case someone will suffer a 
penalty, even if he is a general or a colonel.” 

As he spoke he glared defiantly at the older 
officer, who calmly proceeded to translate the 
speech to the colonel. Carg reported that it was 
translated verbatim. Then the general sat back 
and squinted at his companion, who seemed 
fairly bewildered by the threat. Patsy caught 
the young officer smothering a smile, but neither 
of them interrupted the silence that followed. 

Once again the colonel picked up the papers 
and gave them a rigid examination, especially 
that of the German ambassador, which was writ- 
ten in his own language. “ I cannot understand,” 
he muttered, “ how one insignificant American 
citizen could secure such powerful endorsements. 
It has never happened before in my experience.” 

“ It is extraordinary,” said the general. 

“ Mr. Merrick,” said Patsy to him, “ is a very 
156 


IN THE RED CROSS 


important man in America. He is so important 
that any indignity to him will be promptly 
resented.” 

“ I will investigate your case further,” decided 
Colonel Grau, after another sotto voce conference 
with the general. “ Spies are getting to be very 
clever, these days, and we cannot take chances. 
However, I assure you there is no disposition to 
worry you and until your standing is determined 
you will be treated with every consideration.” 

“ Do you mean that we are prisoners ? ” asked 
Uncle John, trying to control his indignation. 

“ No, indeed. You will be detained, of course, 
but you are not prisoners — as yet. I will keep 
your papers and submit them to the general staff. 
It will be for that august body to decide.” 

Uncle John protested vigorously; Patsy faced 
the old general and told him this action was an 
outrage that would be condemned by the entire 
civilized world; Captain Carg gravely assured 
both officers that they were making a serious 
mistake. But nothing could move the stolid Ger- 
mans. The general, indeed, smiled grimly and 
told them in English that he was in no way re- 
157 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

sponsible, whatever happened. This was Colonel 
Grau’s affair, but he believed, nevertheless, that 
the colonel was acting wisely. 

The young officer, who had stood like a statue 
during the entire interview, was ordered to ac- 
company the Americans to a hotel, where they 
must be kept under surveillance but might fol- 
low, to an extent, their own devices. They were 
not to mail letters nor send telegrams. 

The officer asked who should guard the 
suspects. 

“ Why not yourself, Lieutenant? You are on 
detached duty, I believe ? ” 

“ At the port, Colonel.” 

“ There are too many officers at the port ; it is 
a sinecure. I will appoint you to guard the 
Americans. You speak their language, I 
believe ? ” 

The young man bowed. 

“Very well; I shall hold you responsible for 
their safety.” 

They were then dismissed and compelled to 
follow their guard from the room. 

Patsy was now wild with rage and Uncle 
LS8 


IN THE RED CROSS 

John speechless. Even Carg was evidently 
uneasy. 

“ Do not mind,” said the young lieutenant con- 
solingly. “ It is merely a temporary inconveni- 
ence, you know, for your release will come very 
soon. And since you are placed in my care I beg 
you to accept this delay with good grace and be 
happy as possible. Ostend is full of life and I 
am conducting you to an excellent hotel.” 


CHAPTER XIII 


TARDY JUSTICE 

The courtesy of Lieutenant von Holtz was 
beyond criticism. He obtained for his charges 
a comfortable suite of rooms in an overcrowded 
hotel, obliging the landlord to turn away other 
guests that Mr. Merrick’s party might be accom- 
modated. The dinner that was served in their 
cosy sitting room proved excellent, having been 
ordered by von Holtz after he had requested that 
privilege. When the young officer appeared to 
see that it was properly served, Patsy invited him 
to join them at the table and he laughingly 
consented. 

“ You are one of our party, by force of cir- 
cumstances,” said the girl, “ and since we’ve 
found you good-natured and polite, and believe 
you are not to blame for our troubles, we may as 
well be friendly while we are together.” 

The young man was evidently well pleased. 

160 


IN THE RED CROSS 


" However evil your fortune may be,” said he, 
“ I cannot fail to be impressed by my own good 
luck. Perhaps you may guess what a relief this 
pleasant commission is to one who for days has 
been compelled to patrol those vile smelling docks, 
watching for spies and enduring all sorts of 
weather.” 

“To think,” said Uncle John gloomily, “ that 
we are accused of being spies ! ” 

“ It is not for me,” returned von Holtz, “ to 
criticize the acts of my superiors. I may say, 
however, that were it my province to decide the 
question, you would now be free. Colonel Grau 
has an excellent record for efficiency and seldom 
makes a mistake, but I suspect his judgment was 
influenced by the general, whose son was once 
jilted by an American girl.” 

" We’re going to get even with them both, 
before this affair is ended,” declared Patsy, 
vindictively ; “ but although you are our actual 
jailer I promise that you will escape our 
vengeance.” 

“ My instructions are quite elastic, as you 
heard,” said the lieutenant. “ I am merely 
161 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

ordered to keep you in Ostend, under my eye, 
until your case has been passed upon by the com- 
mandant or the general staff. Since you have 
money, you may enjoy every luxury save that of 
travel, and I ask you to command my services in 
all ways consistent with my duty.” 

“ What worries me,” said Patsy to Uncle 
John, “is the delay. If we are kept here for 
long, poor Denton will die before we can find his 
wife and take her to him.” 

“ How long are we liable to be detained ? ” 
Uncle John asked the officer. 

“ I cannot say. Perhaps the council of the 
general staff will meet to-morrow morning; per- 
haps not for several days,” was the indefinite 
reply. 

Patsy wiped away the tears that began to well 
into her eyes. She had so fondly set her heart 
on reuniting the Dentons that her disappoint- 
ment was very great. 

Von Holtz noticed the girl’s mood and became 
thoughtful. Captain Carg had remained glum 
and solemn ever since they had left the colonel’s 
office. Uncle John sat in silent indignation, won- 
162 


IN THE RED CROSS 


dering what could be done to influence these 
stupid Germans. Presently the lieutenant 
remarked : 

“ That sailor whom you left with the launch 
seemed an intelligent fellow.” 

Patsy gave a start; Uncle John looked at the 
young man expectantly; the captain nodded his 
head as he slowly replied : 

“ Henderson is one of the picked men I 
brought from Sangoa. He is both intelligent and 
loyal.” 

“ Curiously enough,” said von Holtz, “ I 
neglected to place the man under arrest. I even 
forgot to report him. He is free.” 

“ Ah ! ” exclaimed Patsy, her eyes lighting. 

“ I know a civilian here — a bright young 
Belgian — who is my friend and will do anything 
I ask of him,” resumed von Holtz, still musingly. 
“ I had the good fortune to protect his mother 
when our troops entered the city, and he is 
grateful.” 

Patsy was thinking very fast now. 

“ Could Henderson get to Charleroi, do you 
imagine? ” she asked. “ He has a passport.” 

163 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ We do not consider passports of much value,” 
said the officer ; “ but a Red Cross appoint- 
ment — ” 

“ Oh, he has that, too ; all our men carry 
them.” 

“ In that case, with my friend Rondel to guide 
him, I believe Henderson could accomplish your 
errand.” 

“ Let us send for him at once ! ” exclaimed 
Uncle John. 

Carg scribbled on a card. 

“ He wouldn’t leave the launch without orders, 
unless forced by the Germans,” asserted the cap- 
tain, and handed the card to von Holtz. 

The young lieutenant took his cap, bowed pro- 
foundly and left the room. In ten minutes he 
returned, saying : “ I am not so fortunate as I 

had thought. All our troops are on the move, 
headed for the Yser. There will be fighting, 
presently, and — I must remain here,” he added 
despondently. 

“ It won’t be your last chance, I’m sure,” said 
Patsy. “ Will that dreadful Colonel Grau go, 
too?” 


164 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“No; he is to remain. But all regiments 
quartered here are now marching out and to- 
morrow a fresh brigade will enter Ostende 

They were silent a time, until someone rapped 
upon the door. Von Holtz admitted a slim, 
good-looking young Belgian who grasped his 
hand and said eagerly in French: 

“ You sent for me? ” 

“ Yes. You may speak English here, Monsieur 
Rondel.” Then he presented his friend to the 
Americans, who approved him on sight. 

Henderson came a few minutes later and 
listened respectfully to the plan Miss Doyle un- 
folded. He was to go with Monsieur Rondel 
to Charleroi, find Mrs. Denton, explain that her 
husband was very ill, and bring her back with 
him to Ostend. He would report promptly on 
his return and they would tell him what to do 
next. 

The man accepted the mission without a word 
of protest. Charleroi was in central Belgium, 
but that did not mean many miles away and 
Rondel assured him they would meet with no 
difficulties. The trains were reserved for sol- 

165 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

diers, but the Belgian had an automobile and a 
German permit to drive it. The roads were ex- 
cellent. 

“ Now, remember,” said Patsy, “ the lady you 
are going for is Mrs. Albert Denton. She lives 
with her mother, or did, the last we heard of her.” 

“And her mother’s name and address?” in- 
quired Henderson. 

“ We are ignorant of either,” she confessed ; 
“ but it’s not a very big town and I’m sure you’ll 
easily find her.” 

“ I know the place well,” said Rondel, “ and I 
have friends residing there who will give me 
information.” 

Uncle John supplied them liberally with money, 
impressed upon them the necessity of haste, and 
sent them away. Rondel declared the night time 
was best for the trip and promised to be on the 
way within the hour, and in Charleroi by next 
morning. 

Notwithstanding the fact that they had suc- 
ceeded in promoting by proxy the mission which 
had brought them to Belgium, the Americans 
found the next day an exceedingly irksome one. 

1 66 


IN THE RED CROSS 


In the company of Lieutenant von Holtz they 
were permitted to walk about the city, but they 
found little pleasure in that, owing to the bustle 
of outgoing troops and the arrival of others to 
replace them. Nor did they care to stray far 
from their quarters, for fear the council would 
meet and they might be sent for. 

However, no sign from Colonel Grau was re- 
ceived that day. Patsy went to bed with a 
nervous headache and left Uncle John and the 
captain to smoke more than was good for them. 
Both the men had now come to regard their 
situation as serious and as the American consul 
was at this time absent in Brussels they could 
think of no way to secure their freedom. No 
one knew when the consul would return; Mr. 
Merrick had been refused the privilege of using 
the telegraph or mails. During one of their 
strolls they had met the correspondent of an 
American newspaper, but when the man learned 
they were suspects he got away from them as 
soon as possible. He did not know Mr. Merrick 
and his own liberty was too precarious for him 
to argue with Colonel Grau. 

167 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ I’m beginning to think,” said Uncle John, 
“ that we’re up against a hard proposition. Let- 
ters and endorsements from prominent Amer- 
icans seem to have no weight with these Ger- 
mans. I’d no idea our identity could ever be 
disputed.” 

“ We must admit, sir,” returned the captain, 
reflectively, “ that the spy system in this war is 
something remarkable. Spies are everywhere; 
clever ones, too, who adopt every sort of subter- 
fuge to escape detection. I do not blame Grau 
so much for caution as for lack of judgment.” 

“ He’s a blockhead ! ” cried Mr. Merrick testily. 

“ He is. I’m astonished they should place so 
much power in the hands of one so slow witted.” 

“ He has insulted us,” continued Uncle John. 
“ He has dared to arrest three free-born 
Americans.” 

“ Who came into a troubled country, occupied 
by a conquering army, without being invited.” 

“ Well — that’s true,” sighed the little mil- 
lionaire, “ but what are we going to do about it ? ” 

“Wait,” counseled the captain. 

The next day dawned dark and rainy and the 
1 68 




IN THE RED CROSS 


weather had a depressing effect upon the prison- 
ers. It was too damp to stir out of doors and 
the confinement of the hotel rooms became especi- 
ally irksome. Not only were they anxious about 
their own fate but it was far past the time when 
they should have heard from Henderson and 
Rondel. Patsy’s nerves were getting beyond her 
control; Uncle John stumped around with his 
hands thrust deep in his pockets and a frown 
wrinkling his forehead; the captain smoked in- 
numerable pipes of tobacco and said not a word. 
Von Holtz, noting the uneasiness of his charges, 
discreetly forbore conversation and retired to a 
far corner where he hid behind a book. 

It was nearing evening when a commotion was 
heard on the stairs, followed by the heavy tramp 
of feet in the corridor. A sharp rap sounded on 
the door of their sitting room. Uncle John 
stepped forward to open it, when in stalked a 
group of German officers, their swords and spurs 
clanking and their cloaks glistening with rain- 
drops. At sight of the young girl off came cap 
and helmet and with one accord they bowed low. 

The leader was a tall, thin man with a leathern 
169 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

face, hooked nose and piercing gray eyes. His 
breast glittered with orders. It was von Kargen- 
brut, the military governor. 

“ Pardon our intrusion,” he said in English, 
his harsh voice having a guttural accent. 
“ Which gentleman is Mr. John Merrick?” 

“ I am John Merrick.” 

The eagle eyes swept over him with a swift 
glance. 

“We owe you our apology,” continued the 
governor, speaking as fiercely as if he were 
ordering Uncle John beheaded. “ I have been 
too busy to take up your case before to-day, when 
I discover that we have treated you discourt- 
eously. You will consider our fault due to these 
troubled times, when mistakes occur in spite of 
our watchfulness. Is it not so? ” 

“ Your error has caused us great inconveni- 
ence,” responded Mr. Merrick stiffly. 

The governor whirled around. “ Colonel 
Grau ! ” he called, and from the rear of the group 
the colonel stepped forward. His face still wore 
the expression of comical surprise. “ Return to 
Mr. Merrick his papers and credentials.” 

170 


IN THE RED CROSS 


The colonel drew the packet of papers from his 
breast pocket and handed it to Uncle John. Then 
he glanced hesitatingly at his superior, who glared 
at him. 

“ He cannot speak the English,” said the gov- 
ernor to Mr. Merrick, “ but he owes you 
reparation.” 

“ Grau’s stupidity has been very annoying, to 
say the least,” was the ungracious reply. “ We 
came here on important business, and presented 
our papers — all in proper order — on demand. 
We had the right to expect decent treatment, as 
respectable American citizens engaged in human- 
itarian work; yet this — this — man,” pointing 
an accusing finger at the colonel, “ ordered us 
detained — arrested ! — and kept our papers.” 

The governor listened coldly and at the end of 
the speech inclined his head. 

“ Colonel Grau,” said he, “ has been relieved 
of his duties here and transferred to another 
station. To you I have personally apologized. 
You will find my endorsement on your papers 
and, in addition, an order that will grant you 
safe conduct wherever you may wish to go. If 
171 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

that is not enough, make your demands and I 
will consider them.” 

“ Why, that is all I can expect, your Excellency, 
under the circumstances,” replied Mr. Merrick. 
“ I suppose I ought to thank you for your present 
act of justice.” 

“No; it is your due. Good evening, Mr. 
Merrick.” 

He swung around on his heel and every officer 
of the group turned with him, like so many autom- 
atons, all facing the door. But Mr. Merrick 
touched the governor upon the arm. 

“ One moment, your Excellency. This young 
officer, Lieutenant von Holtz, has treated us 
kindly and courteously. I want you to know 
that one of your men, at least, has performed 
his duty in a way to merit our thanks — and 
yours.” 

The governor scowled at Lieutenant von Holtz, 
who stood like a statue, with lowered eyes. 

“ Lieutenant, you are commissioned to guide 
Mr. Merrick as long as he remains within our 
lines. You will guard his safety and that of 
172 


IN THE RED CROSS 


his party. When he departs, come to me per- 
sonally with your report/' 

The young officer bowed ; the governor tramped 
to the door and went out, followed by his staff. 
Grau left the room last, with hang-dog look, and 
Patsy slammed the door in the hope of bumping 
his wooden head. 

“So we’re free?” she said, turning to von 
Holtz. 

“ Not only that, Fraulein, but you are highly 
favored,” he replied. “All German territory is 
now open to you.” 

“ It’s about time they came to their senses,” 
remarked Uncle John, with a return to his 
accustomed cheerfulness. 

“And, best of all,” said Patsy exultantly, 
“ they’ve fired that awful colonel ! ” 

The captain thoughtfully filled and lighted his 
pipe. 

“ I wonder,” said he, “ how that happened. 
Was it the council, do you think, Lieutenant ? ” 

Von Holtz shook his head. 

“ I think it was the governor,” he replied. 
173 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ He is a just man, and had you been able to see 
him personally on your arrival you would have 
been spared any annoyance.” 

“ Perhaps,” said Patsy doubtfully. “ But your 
governor’s a regular bear.” 

“ I believe that is merely his way,” asserted 
Uncle John. “ I didn’t mind the man’s tone when 
I found his words and deeds were all right. But 
he — ” 

Another rap at the door. Patsy opened it and 
admitted Henderson. He saluted the captain, 
bowed to the others and said: 

“We’ve got her, sir.” 

“ Mrs. Denton ? ” cried Patsy, delightedly. 

Henderson nodded. 

“ Yes, Miss Doyle ; Mrs. Denton and the 
children.” 

“ The children ! Why, there aren’t any.” 

“I beg your pardon, Miss;. there are two.” 

“Two children!” she exclaimed in dismay. 
“ There must be some mistake. The young 
people have only been married five months.” 

Henderson stood stiff as a poker, refusing to 
argue the point. 


174 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ A governess, maybe,” suggested the captain. 

“More likely/’ said Uncle John, “young 
Denton married a widow, with — eh — eh — 
incumbrances.” 

“ That’s it, sir,” said Henderson earnestly. 

“ What’s it?” 

“ The incumbrances, sir. No other word could 
describe ’em.” 

Patsy’s heart sank ; she was greatly dis- 
appointed. 

“ And she so young and pretty ! ” she 
murmured. 

Henderson started to smile, but quickly sup- 
pressed it. 

“Shall I show them up, Miss?” he inquired. 

“Of course,” answered Uncle John, as the girl 
hesitated. “ You should have brought her to us 
at once. Where is that Belgian — Rondel?” 

“ He is guarding the woman, sir.” 

“ Guarding her!” 

“ She’s a little difficult to manage, sir, at times. 
She left Charleroi willingly enough, but she’s 
tricky, and it is our duty to deliver her to you 
safely.” 


175 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ Get her at once, Henderson,” exclaimed 
Patsy, recovering her wits ; “ and the dear 
children, too.” 

Presently there was a sound of shuffling on the 
stairs and through the corridor. The door 
opened to admit the arrivals from Charleroi. 

Henderson first pushed in a big woman dressed 
in a faded blue-checked gown, belted around the 
waist in a manner that made her look like a 
sack tied in the middle. Her head was bare, her 
hair awry, her face sullen and hard; she was 
undeniably “ fleshy ” and not altogether clean. 
She resisted Henderson at every step and glared 
around her with shrewd and shifting eyes. 

Following her came Monsieur Rondel leading 
a boy and a girl, the latter being a small replica 
of the woman. The boy was viciously struggling 
to bite the hand of the Belgian, who held him 
fast. 

“ Ah, well,” said Rondel, first sighing and then 
turning with a smile to face the lieutenant, “ we 
have performed our mission. But heaven guard 
us from another like it ! ” 

Patsy stared hard at the woman. 

176 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ This cannot be Mrs. Denton,” she gasped, 
bewildered. 

“ Indeed ? ” answered Rondel in English. 
“ She declares that is her name. Question her 
in French or Flemish, Miss Doyle.” 

Patsy addressed the woman in French but 
could elicit no reply. She stood impassive and 
silent. 

“ How did you make the mistake ? ” asked the 
girl, looking reproachfully first at Henderson and 
then at Rondel, both of whom were evidently 
astonished to find themselves at fault. “ I have 
seen a photograph of Mrs. Andrew Denton, taken 
recently, and she is young and pretty and — and 
— rather small.” 

Monsieur Rondel cleared his throat to answer : 

“ It happened in this way, mademoiselle : We 
searched one whole day in Charleroi for Mrs. 
Denton but could not find her. My friends, on 
whom I had relied for assistance, had unfortu- 
nately moved away or joined the army. The 
townspeople were suspicious of Monsieur Hen- 
derson, who is a foreigner. We could get no 
information whatever. I appealed to the burgo- 
1 77 


AUNT JANUS NIECES 

master and he said he would try to find Mrs. 
Denton for us the next day. In the morning 
came to us this woman, who said she was the 
person we sought. If we promised her safe 
conduct to Dunkirk, she would go with us. She 
had wanted to go to Dunkirk for some weeks, 
but the Germans would not let her pass the lines. 
We suspected nothing wrong, for she admitted 
she was aware that her husband is in Dunkirk, 
and she wanted to get to him. So we brought 
her to you.” 

Patsy faced the woman resolutely and said in 
French: 

“ Why did you wish to get to Dunkirk ? ” 

“ He has said it. To find my husband,” replied 
the woman in a surly tone. 

“ What is your name ? ” 

No reply. 

“ Answer me!” 

The woman eyed her obstinately and remained 
silent. 

“ Very well. Release those children, Monsieur 
Rondel. Madam, you have imposed upon us; 
you have tricked us in order to get to Ostend at 
178 


IN THE RED CROSS 


our expense. Now go, and take your children 
with you.” * 

She pointed dramatically at the door, but the 
woman retained her position, only moving to cuff 
the boy, who was kicking Henderson on his shins. 
Then, setting her hands on her hips she said 
defiantly : 

“ They promised me passage to Dunkirk, and 
they must take me there.” 

“ Who promised you? ” 

“ Those men,” pointing to them, “ and the 
burgomaster.” 

“ Yes,” admitted Henderson, “ we agreed with 
the burgomaster to take her out of the country. 
We signed a paper to that effect.” 

“ But she is a Belgian. And she is not the 
person she claimed to be.” 

To this neither Rondel nor Henderson had an 
answer. 

“ See here,” said Uncle John, “ I’ll untangle 
this matter in a jiffy. Here is money; give it to 
the woman and tell her to get out — or we’ll eject 
her by force.” 

The woman grabbed the money eagerly, but 
179 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

after placing it in an ample pocket she said : “ I 
will go no place but Dunkirk. I will not leave 
you until you take me there.” 

But here the lieutenant interfered. He sud- 
denly faced the woman, who had not noticed his 
presence before, and she shrank back in fear at 
sight of his uniform. The boy and girl both 
began to cry. 

“ I know you,” said von Holtz sternly. “ You 
are the wife of a spy who has been condemned to 
death by both the Belgians and the Germans, 
since he betrayed them both. The last time you 
came to Ostend to annoy us you were driven out 
of the city. There is still an edict against you. 
Will you leave this room peaceably, or shall I 
order you under arrest ? ” 

“ Dog of a German ! ” she hissed, “ the day is 
coming when I will help to drive you out of Bel- 
gium, even as you now drive me. Brave soldiers 
are you, to make war on women and children. 
Guh! I would kill you where you stand — if I 
dared.” With venomous hate she spat upon the 
floor, then seized her wailing children, shook 
them and waddled out of the room. 

180 


IN THE RED CROSS 


There was a general sigh of relief. 

“ You may return to the launch, Henderson,” 
said the captain. 

“ Monsieur Rondel/’ said Uncle John, grasp- 
ing the young Belgian’s hand, “ we are grateful 
to you for your kindness. The failure of your 
mission was not your fault. We thank you. The 
governor has given us our liberty and permission 
to travel where we please, so to-morrow we will 
go to Charleroi ourselves to search for Mrs. 
Denton.” 

“ My motor car is at your disposal, sir, and 
my services.” 

“ To-morrow ? Oh, let us go to-night, Uncle ! ” 
cried Patsy. 

Mr. Merrick looked inquiringly at the Belgian. 

“ I am ready now,” said Rondel with a bow. 

“ Then,” said Patsy, “ we will start in half an 
hour. You see, we have wasted two whole days 
— two precious days! I hope Dr. Gys will keep 
his promise, and that we shall find poor Denton 
alive on our return.” 


CHAPTER XIV 


FOUND AT LAST 

The pretty city of Charleroi had suffered little 
damage from the German invasion, yet many of 
the townspeople had gone away since the occu- 
pation and those who remained kept well within 
their houses or huddled in anxious groups upon 
the streets. The civic affairs were still adminis- 
tered by the Belgian burgomaster, but the martial 
law of the Germans prevailed over all. 

When Patsy Doyle, escorted by Uncle John 
and accompanied by Captain Carg, Lieutenant 
von Holtz and Monsieur Rondel, arrived in the 
early morning, the streets were comparatively 
deserted. The Hotel Royal received them hos- 
pitably and the landlord and his daughters 
prepared them an excellent breakfast. 

While eating, Patsy chatted with the Belgian 
girls, who were neat, modest and intelligent. She 
found that Henderson and Rondel had not 
182 


IN THE RED CROSS 


stopped at this hotel while in Charleroi, but at a 
smaller inn at the other end of the town. The 
girls remembered hearing of their visit and of 
their inquiries for a Mrs. Denton, but did not 
know whether they had succeeded in their quest 
or not 

“ We have lived here all our lives/’ said the 
eldest of the landlord’s three daughters, “ but we 
have not known, during that time, any family of 
Dentons in Charleroi.” 

Patsy reflected. 

“ They were married only five months ago, 
these Dentons,” said she, “ and the young man 
may have come from some other town. Do you 
remember that any of your young girls were 
married about five months ago? ” 

Yes; there was Hildegarde Bentel, but she had 
married Anthony Mattison, who was not a sol- 
dier. Could the American mamselle remember 
what the girl’s first name was? 

“ Oh, yes ! ” exclaimed Patsy. “ She signed 
her letters ' Elizabeth.’ ” 

They shook their heads. 

“ My name is also Elizabeth,” said one. “ We 

183 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

have many Elizabeths in Charleroi, but none has 
lately married.” 

“ And her husband told me that she was now 
living here with her mother.” 

“Ah, let us see, then,” responded another. 
“ Could she have been a lady of rank, think 
you?” 

“I — I do not know.” 

“Is her husband an officer?” 

“No; a private, I believe.” 

“ Then we are on the wrong scent,” laughed 
the girl. “I had in mind the daughter of the 
Countess Voig, whose name chances to be 
Elizabeth. She was educated at a convent in 
Antwerp, and the countess has lived in that city 
for several years, in order to be nearer her 
daughter. There was some gossip here that the 
young lady had married in Antwerp, just after 
leaving the convent ; but we know little of the life 
of the Voigs because they are very reserved. 
Two or three months ago they returned to their 
castle, which is four miles to the north of 
Charleroi, and there they are still living in retire- 
ment. Every day the old steward drives into 
184 


IN THE RED CROSS 


-jtown to visit the post office, but we have not seen 
the countess nor her daughter since they came 
back.” 

Patsy related this news to Uncle John, who did 
not understand French. 

“ Let us drive over to Castle Voig the first 
thing,” she said. 

“ But, my dear, it’s unreasonable,” he objected. 
“ Do you suppose a high-born young lady would 
marry a common soldier? In America, where 
we have no caste, it would be quite probable, but 
here — ” 

“ He wasn’t a soldier five months ago,” said 
Patsy. “ He’s just a volunteer, who joined the 
army when his country needed him, a$ many of 
the wealthy and aristocratic Belgians did. He 
may be high-born himself, for all we know. At 
any rate I mean to visit that castle. Tell Rondel 
to bring around the automobile.” 

They had no trouble in passing the guards, 
owing to the presence of von Holtz, and in half 
an hour they were rolling through a charming, 
peaceful country that as yet had suffered no 
blemish through the German conquest. 

i8 S 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

At Castle Voig they were received by an aged 
retainer who was visibly nervous at their arrival. 
He eyed the uniform of young von Holtz with 
ill-concealed terror and hurried away to carry 
their cards to the countess. After a long wait 
they learned that the countess would receive the 
Americans, but it was a full half hour after that 
when they were ushered into a reception room 
where a lady sat in solitary state. 

Under other circumstances Patsy could have 
spent a day in admiring the quaint, old-fashioned 
furniture and pictures and the wonderful carv- 
ings of the beamed ceiling, but now she was so 
excited that she looked only at the countess. The 
lady was not very imposing in form or dress but 
her features were calm and dignified and she met 
her guests with a grave courtesy that was 
impressive if rather chilly. Before Patsy had 
summoned courage to explain her errand a 
younger woman — almost a girl — hurriedly 
entered the room and took a position beside the 
other. 

“ Oh, it’s Elizabeth — it really is I ” cried 
Patsy, clapping her hands together joyfully. 

1 86 


IN THE RED CROSS 


Mother and daughter regarded the American 
girl wonderingly and somewhat haughtily, but 
Patsy was not in the least dismayed. 

“ Isn’t this Mrs. Denton? ” she asked, stepping 
forward to lay a hand upon the other girl’s arm. 

“ Yes,” was the quiet reply. 

Patsy’s great eyes regarded her a moment with 
so sad and sympathetic a look that Mrs. Denton 
shrank away. Then she noticed for the first time 
the Red Cross uniform, and her hand went 
swiftly to her heart as she faltered: 

“You — you have brought bad news of 
Andrew — of my husband ? ” 

“ Yes, I am sorry to admit that it is bad news,” 
answered Patsy soberly. “ He has been wounded 
and is now lying ill in our hospital ship at Dun- 
kirk. We came here to find you, and to take 
you to him.” 

Mrs. Denton turned to her mother, a passion- 
ate appeal in her eyes. But it was some moments 
before the hard, set look on the face of the 
countess softened. It did soften at last, however, 
and she turned to Patsy and said simply: 

“We will prepare for the journey at once. 
187 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

Pray excuse us; Niklas will serve refreshments. 
We will not detain you long.” 

As they turned to leave the room Elizabeth 
Denton suddenly seized Patsy’s hand. 

“ He will live? ” she whispered. “ Tell me he 
will live ! ” 

Patsy’s heart sank, but she summoned her wits 
by an effort. 

“ I am not a surgeon, my dear, and do not 
know how serious the wound may be,” she 
answered, “ but I assure you it will gladden his 
heart to see you again. He thinks and speaks 
only of you.” 

The girl- wife studied her face a moment and 
then dropped her hand and hurried after her 
mother. 

“ I fibbed, Uncle,” said Patsy despondently. 
“ I fibbed willfully. But — how could I help it 
when she looked at me that way ? ” 


1 88 


CHAPTER XV 


DR. GYS SURPRISES HIMSELF 

Henderson was waiting with the launch at the 
Ostend docks. Lieutenant von Holtz was ear- 
nestly thanked by Patsy and Uncle John for his 
kindness and in return he exacted a promise from 
them to hunt him up in Germany some day, when 
the war was ended. The countess and Mrs. 
Denton, sad and black-robed, had been made 
comfortable in the stern seats of the boat and the 
captain was just about to order Henderson to 
start the engine when up to them rushed the fat 
Belgian woman and her two children. 

Without an instant's hesitation the two young- 
sters leaped aboard like cats and their mother 
would have followed but for the restraining hand 
of Captain Carg. 

“ What does this mean ? ” cried Mr. Merrick 
angrily. 

The woman jabbered volubly in French. 

189 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ She says,” interpreted Patsy, “ that we prom- 
ised to take her to Dunkirk, so she may find her 
husband.” 

“ Let her walk! ” said Uncle John. 

“ The Germans won’t allow her to cross the 
lines. What does it matter. Uncle? We have 
plenty of room. In three hours we can be rid 
of them, and doubtless the poor thing is really 
anxious to find her lost husband, who was last 
seen in Dunkirk.” 

“He is a spy, and a traitor to both sides, 
according to report.” 

“That isn’t our affair, is it? And I suppose 
even people of that class have hearts and 
affections.” 

“ Well, let her come aboard, Captain,” decided 
Uncle John. “ We can’t waste time in arguing.” 

They stowed her away in the bow, under Hen- 
derson’s care, and threatened the children with 
dire punishment if they moved from under her 
shadow. Then the launch sped out into the bay 
and away toward Dunkirk. 

Three days had brought many changes to the 
hospital ship Arabella. Of the original batch of 
190 


IN THE RED CROSS 


patients only Lieutenant Elbl, the German, and 
Andrew Denton now remained. All the others 
had been sent home, transferred to the govern- 
ment hospitals or gone back to the front, accord- 
ing to the character of their injuries. This was 
necessary because their places were needed by 
the newly wounded who were brought each day 
from the front. Little Maurie was driving the 
ambulance again and, with A jo beside him and 
Dr. Kelsey and a sailor for assistants, the Bel- 
gian would make a dash to Ypres or Dixmude or 
fumes and return with a full load of wounded 
soldiers. 

These were the days of the severest fighting in 
Flanders, fighting so severe that it could not keep 
up for long. There would come a lull presently, 
when the overworked nurses and surgeons could 
get a bit of sleep and draw a long breath again. 

Gys had elected to remain aboard the ship, 
where with Maud and Beth he was kept busy 
night and day. Two French girls — young 
women of good birth and intelligence — had been 
selected by Dr. Gys from a number of applicants 
as assistant nurses, and although they were inex- 
191 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

perienced, their patriotic zeal rendered them 
valuable. They now wore the Red Cross uni- 
forms and it was decided to retain them as long 
as the ship’s hospital remained crowded. 

There was plenty of work for all and the 
worry and long hours might have broken down 
the health and strength of Beth and Maud had 
not the doctor instituted regular periods of duty 
for each member of the force and insisted on the 
schedule being carried out. 

This hospital ship was by no means so gloomy 
a place as the reader may imagine. The soldiers 
were prone to regard their hurts lightly, as “ a 
bit of hard luck,” and since many had slight 
injuries it was customary for them to gather in 
groups upon the deck, where they would laugh 
and chat together, play cards for amusement or 
smoke quantities of cigarettes. They were mainly 
kind-hearted and grateful fellows and openly 
rejoiced that the misfortunes of war had cast 
their lot on this floating hospital. 

Under the probe of the surgeon to-day, a fort- 
night hence back on the firing line, was not very 
unusual with these brave men. The ambulances 
192 


IN THE RED CROSS 


had gathered in a few German soldiers, who 
would become prisoners of war on their recovery, 
and while these were inclined to be despondent 
and unsociable they were treated courteously by 
all, the Americans showing no preference for any 
nation. The large majority of the patients, how- 
ever, came from the ranks of the Allies — 
French, English and Belgian — and these were 
men who could smile and be merry with band- 
aged heads, arms a-sling, legs in splints, bullet 
holes here and there, such afflictions being 
regarded by their victims with a certain degree 
of pride. 

Dr. Gys was in his element, for now he had 
ample opportunity to display his skill and his 
patients were unable to “ jump to another doc- 
tor ” in case his ugly features revolted them. His 
main interest, however, lay in the desperately 
wounded Belgian private, Andrew Denton, whom 
he had agreed to keep alive until the return of 
Miss Doyle and her uncle. 

In making this promise Gys had figured on a 
possible delay of several days, but on the second 
day following Patsy’s departure the sudden sink- 
193 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

in g of his patient aroused a defiant streak in the 
surgeon and he decided to adopt drastic measures 
in order to prevent Denton from passing away 
before his wife’s arrival. 

“ I want you to assist me in a serious opera- 
tion,” he said to Maud Stanton. “ By all the 
rules and precedents of human flesh, that fellow 
Denton ought to succumb to his wound within 
the next three hours. The shell played havoc 
with his interior and I have never dared, until 
now, to attempt to patch things up; but if we’re 
going to keep him alive until morning, or until 
your cousin’s return, we must accomplish the 
impossible.” 

“ What is that? ” she inquired. 

“ Remove his vital organs, tinker them up and 
put them back so they will work properly.” 

“ Can that be done, doctor? ” 

“ I think not. But I’m going to try it. I am 
positive that if we leave him alone he has less 
than three hours of life remaining; so, if we fail, 
Miss Stanton, as it is reasonable to expect, poor 
Denton will merely be spared a couple of hours 
of pain. Get the anaesthetics, please.” 

194 


IN THE RED CROSS 


With all her training and experience as a nurse, 
Maud was half terrified at the ordeal before her. 
But she realized the logic of the doctor’s conclu* 
sion and steeled her nerves to do her part. 

An hour later she stood looking down upon 
the patient. He was still upon the operating table 
but breathing quietly and as strongly as at any 
time since he had received his wound. 

“ This shows,” Dr. Gys said to her, his voice 
keen with elation, “ what fools we are to take 
any human condition for granted. Man is a 
machine. Smash his mechanism and it cannot 
work; make the proper repairs before it is too 
late and — there he goes, ticking away as before. 
Not as good a machine as it was prior to the 
break, but with care and caution it will run a 
long time.” 

“ He will live, then, you think ? ” she asked 
softly, marveling that after what she had wit- 
nessed the man was still able to breathe. 

Gys leaned down and put his ear to the heart 
of the patient. For two minutes he remained 
motionless. Then he straightened up and a smile 
spread over his disfigured features. 

195 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ I confidently believe, Miss Stanton, we have 
turned the trick! Luck, let us call it, for no 
sensible surgeon would have attempted the thing. 
Rest assured that Andrew Denton will live for 
the next ten days. More than that, with no 
serious set-back he may fully recover and live for 
many years to come.” 

He was so pleased that tears stood in his one 
good eye and he wiped them away sheepishly. 
The girl took his hand and pressed it in both 
her own. 

“ You are wonderful — wonderful ! ” she said. 

“ Don’t, please — don’t look in my face,” he 
pleaded. 

“ I won’t,” she returned, dropping her eyes ; 
“ I will think only of the clever brain, the skillful 
hand and the stout heart.” 

“ Not even that,” he said. 04 Think of the girl 
wife — of Elizabeth. It was she who steadied 
my hand to-day. Indeed, Miss Stanton, it was 
Elizabeth’s influence that saved him. But for her 
we would have let him die.” 


196 


CHAPTER XVI 


CLARETTE 

So it was toward evening of the fourth day 
that the launch finally sighted the ship Arabella. 
Delays and difficulties had been encountered in 
spite of government credentials and laissez-passer 
and Patsy had begun to fear they would not reach 
the harbor of Dunkirk before dark. 

All through the journey the Belgian woman and 
her children had sat sullenly in the bow, the 
youngsters kept from mischief by the stern eye 
of Henderson. In the stern seats, however, the 
original frigid silence had been thawed by Patsy 
Doyle’s bright chatter. She began by telling the 
countess and Elizabeth all about herself and Beth 
and Maud and Uncle John, relating how they 
had come to embark upon this unusual mission 
of nursing the wounded of a foreign war, and 
how they had secured the services of the clever 
but disfigured surgeon, Dr. Gys. She gave the 
197 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

ladies a clear picture of the hospital ship and 
told how the girls had made their dash to the 
firing line during the battle of Nieuport and 
brought back an ambulance full of wounded — 
including Andrew Denton. 

Patsy did not answer very fully Elizabeth 
Denton’s eager questions concerning the nature 
of her husband’s injuries, but she tried to pre- 
pare the poor young wife for the knowledge that 
the wound would prove fatal. This was a most 
delicate and difficult thing to do and Patsy blun- 
dered and floundered until her very ambiguity 
aroused alarm. 

“ Tell me the worst ! ” begged Elizabeth 
Denton, her face pale and tensely drawn. 

“ Why, I cannot do that, you see,” replied 
Patsy, “ because the worst hasn’t happened yet ; 
nor can I tell you the best, because a wound is 
such an uncertain thing. It was a shell, you 
know, that exploded behind him, and Dr. Gys 
thought it made a rather serious wound. Mr. 
Denton was unconscious a long time, and when 
he came to himself we eased his pain, so he would 
not suffer.” 


198 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“You came to get me because you thought he 
would die? ” 

“ I came because he asked me to read to him 
your letters, and I found they comforted him 
so much that your presence would, I knew, com- 
fort him more.” 

There was a long silence. Presently the 
countess asked in her soft, even voice : 

“ Will he be alive when we get there? ” 

Patsy thought of the days that had been 
wasted, because of their detention at Ostend 
through Colonel Grau’s stupidity. 

“ I hope so, madam,” was all she could reply. 

Conversation lagged after this episode. Eliza- 
beth was weeping quietly on her mother’s shoul- 
der. Patsy felt relief in the knowledge that she 
had prepared them, as well as she could, for 
whatever might wait upon their arrival. 

The launch made directly for the ship and as 
she came alongside to the ladder the rail was 
lined with faces curious to discover if the errand 
had been successful. Doctor Gys was there to 
receive them, smiling horribly as he greeted the 
two women in black. Maud, seeing that they 
199 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

recoiled from the doctor’s appearance, took his 
place and said cheerfully: 

“ Mr. Denton is asleep, just now, but by the 
time you have bathed and had a cup of tea I 
am quite sure he will be ready to receive you.” 

“Tell me; how is he? Are you his nurse?” 
asked the young wife with trembling lips. 

“ I am his nurse, and I assure you he is doing 
very well,” answered Maud with her pleasant, 
winning smile. “ When he finds you by his side 
I am sure his recovery will be rapid. No nurse 
can take the place of a wife, you know.” 

Patsy looked at her reproachfully, thinking she 
was misleading the poor young wife, but Maud 
led the ladies away to a stateroom and it was 
Dr. Gys who explained the wonderful improve- 
ment in the patient. 

“ Well,” remarked Uncle John, “ if we’d 
known he had a chance, we wouldn’t have wor- 
ried so because we were held up. In fact, if we’d 
known he would get well, we needn’t have gone 
at all.” 

“Oh, Uncle John!” cried Patsy reprovingly. 

“ It was your going that saved him,” declared 


200 


IN THE RED CROSS 


the doctor. “ I promised to keep him alive, for 
that little wife of his, and when he took a turn 
for the worse I had to assume desperate chances 
— which won out.” 

Meantime the big Belgian woman and her 
children had been helped up the ladder by Hen- 
derson, who stood respectfully by, awaiting 
orders for their disposal. The mother had her 
eye on the shore and was scowling steadily upon 
it when little Maurie came on deck and strolled 
toward Mr. Merrick to greet him on his return. 
Indeed, he had approached to within a dozen feet 
of the group when the woman at the rail sud- 
denly turned and saw him. 

“ Aha — mon Henri ! ” she cried and made a 
dash toward him with outstretched arms. 

“ Clarette!” 

Maurie stopped short ; he grew pallid ; he 
trembled. But he did not await her coming. 
With a howl that would have shamed a wild 
Indian he leaped upon the rail and made a dive 
into the water below. 

Even as her engulfing arms closed around the 
spot where he had stood, there was a splash and 


201 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

splutter that drew everyone to the side to watch 
the little Belgian swim frantically to the docks. 

The woman grabbed a child with either arm 
and held them up. 

“ See ! ” she cried. “ There is your father — 
the coward — the traitor — the deserter of his 
loving family. He thinks to escape ; but we shall 
capture him yet, and when we do — ” 

“ Hurry, father,” screamed the little girl, “ or 
she’ll get you.” 

A slap on the mouth silenced her and set the 
boy wailing dismally. The boy was accustomed 
to howl without provocation. He kicked his 
mother until she let him down. By this time they 
could discern only Maurie’s head bobbing in the 
distant water. Presently he clambered up the 
dock and ran dripping toward the city, dis- 
appearing among the buildings. 

“ Madam,” said Uncle John, sternly, “ you have 
cost us the best chauffeur we ever had.” 

She did not understand English, but she shook 
her fist in Mr. Merrick’s face and danced around 
in an elephantine fashion and jabbered a stream 
of French. 


202 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ What does she say ? ” he asked Patsy, who 
was laughing merrily at the absurd scene. 

“ She demands to be put ashore at once. But 
shall we do that, and put poor Maurie in peril 
of being overtaken ?” 

“ Self preservation is the first law of nature, 
my dear,” replied Uncle John. “ I’m sorry for 
Maurie, but he alone is responsible. Henderson,” 
he added, turning to the sailor, “ put this woman 
ashore as soon as possible. We’ve had enough 
of her.” 


203 


CHAPTER XVII 


PERPLEXING PROBLEMS 

Although the famous battle of Nieuport had 
come to an end, the fighting in West Flanders 
was by no means over. All along the line fierce 
and relentless war waged without interruption 
and if neither side could claim victory, neither 
side suffered defeat. Day after day hundreds 
of combatants fell; hundreds of disabled limped 
to the rear ; hundreds were made prisoners. And 
always a stream of reinforcements came to take 
the places of the missing ones. Towns were occu- 
pied to-day by the Germans, to-morrow by the 
Allies; from Nieuport on past Dixmude and 
beyond Ypres the dykes had been opened and 
the low country was one vast lake. The only 
approaches from French territory were half a 
dozen roads built high above the water line, which 
rendered them capable of stubborn defence. 

Dunkirk was thronged with reserves — Eng- 
204 


IN THE RED CROSS 


lish, Belgian and French. The Turcos and East 
Indians were employed by the British in this 
section and were as much dreaded by the civilians 
as the enemy. Uncle John noticed that military 
discipline was not so strict in Dunkirk as at 
Ostend; but the Germans had but one people to 
control while the French town was host to many 
nations and races. 

Strange as it may appear, the war was growing 
monotonous to those who were able to view it 
closely, perhaps because nothing important 
resulted from all the desperate, continuous fight- 
ing. The people were pursuing their accustomed 
vocations while shells burst and bullets whizzed 
around them. They must manage to live, what- 
ever the outcome of this struggle of nations 
might be. 

Aboard the American hospital ship there was 
as yet no sense of monotony. The three girls 
who had conceived and carried out this remark- 
able philanthropy were as busy as bees during all 
their waking hours and the spirit of helpful 
charity so strongly possessed them that all their 
thoughts were centered on their work. No two 
205 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

cases were exactly alike and it was interesting, 
to the verge of fascination, to watch the results 
of various treatments of divers wounds and 
afflictions. 

The girls often congratulated themselves on 
having secured so efficient a surgeon as Doctor 
Gys, who gloried in his work, and whose judg- 
ment, based on practical experience, was compre- 
hensive and unfailing. The man’s horribly 
contorted features had now become so familiar 
to the girls that they seldom noticed them — 
unless a cry of fear from some newly arrived 
and unnerved patient reminded them that the 
doctor was exceedingly repulsive to strangers. 

No one recognized this grotesque hideousness 
more than Doctor Gys himself. When one poor 
Frenchman died under the operating knife, star- 
ing with horror into the uncanny face the surgeon 
bent over him, Beth was almost sure the fright 
had hastened his end. She said to Gys that 
evening, when they met on deck, “ Wouldn’t it 
be wise for you to wear a mask in the operating 
room ? ” 

He considered the suggestion a moment, a deep 
206 


IN THE RED CROSS 

flush spreading over his face; then he nodded 
gravely. 

“ It may be an excellent idea,” he agreed. 
“ Once, a couple of years ago, I proposed wear- 
ing a mask wherever I went, but my friends 
assured me the effect would be so marked that 
it would attract to me an embarrassing amount 
of attention. I have trained myself to bear the 
repulsion involuntarily exhibited by all I meet 
and have taught myself to take a philosophic, if 
somewhat cynical, view of my facial blemishes; 
yet in this work I can see how a mask might be 
merciful to my patients. I will experiment a bit 
along this line, if you will help me, and we’ll see 
what we can accomplish.” 

“ You must not think,” she said quietly, for 
she detected a little bitterness in his tone, “ that 
you are in any way repulsive to those who know 
you well. We all admire you as a man and are 
grieved at the misfortunes that marred your fea- 
tures. After all, Doctor, people of intelligence 
seldom judge one by appearances.” 

“ However they may judge me,” said he, “ I’m 
a failure. You say you admire me as a man, but 
207 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

you don’t It’s just a bit of diplomatic flattery. 
I’m a good doctor and surgeon, I’ll admit, but 
my face is no more repellent than my cowardly 
nature. Miss Beth, I hate myself for my 
cowardice far more than I detest my ghastly 
countenance. Yet I am powerless to remedy 
either defect” 

“ I believe that what you term your cowardice 
is merely a physical weakness,” declared the girl. 
“ It must have been caused by the suffering you 
endured at the time of your various injuries. I 
have noticed that suffering frequently unnerves 
one, and that a person who has once been badly 
hurt lives in nervous terror of being hurt 
again.” 

“ You are very kind to try to excuse my fault,” 
said he, “ but the truth is I have always been a 
coward — from boyhood up.” 

"Yet you embarked on all those dangerous 
expeditions.” 

" Yes, just to have fun with myself ; to sneer 
at the coward flesh, so to speak. I used to long 
for dangers, and when they came upon me I 
would jeer at and revile the quaking I could not 
208 


IN THE RED CROSS 


repress. I pushed my shrinking body into peril 
and exulted in the punishment it received.” 

Beth looked at him wonderingly. 

“ You are a strange man, indeed,” said she. 
“ Really, I cannot understand your mental atti- 
tude at all.” 

He chuckled and rubbed his hands together 
gleefully. 

“ I can,” he returned, “ for I know what causes 
it” And then he went away and left her, still 
seeming highly amused at her bewilderment. 

In the operating room the next day Gys 
appeared with a rubber mask drawn across his 
features. The girls decided that it certainly 
improved his appearance, odd as the masked face 
might appear to strangers. It hid the dreadful 
nose and the scars and to an extent evened the 
size of the eyes, for the holes through which he 
peered were made alike. Gys was himself pleased 
with the device, for after that he wore the mask 
almost constantly, only laying it aside during the 
evenings when he sat on deck. 

It was three days after the arrival of Mrs. 
Denton and her mother — whose advent had 


209 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

accomplished much toward promoting the young 
Belgian’s convalescence — when little Maurie 
suddenly reappeared on the deck of the Arabella. 

“ Oh,” said Patsy, finding him there when she 
came up from breakfast, “ where is Clarette?” 

He shook his head sadly. 

“ We do not live together, just now,” said he. 
“ Clarette is by nature temperamental, you know ; 
she is highly sensitive, and I, alas ! do not always 
please her.” 

“ Did she find you in Dunkirk? ” asked the girl. 

“ Almost, mamselle, but not quite. It was this 
way: I knew if I permitted her to follow me 
she would finally succeed in her quest, for she 
and the dear children have six eyes among them, 
while I have but two; so I reposed within an 
ash-barrel until they had passed on, and then I 
followed them, keeping well out of their sight. 
In that way I managed to escape. But it proved 
a hard task, for my Clarette is very persistent, 
as you may have noticed. So I decided I would 
be more safe upon the ship than upon the shore. 
She is not likely to seek me here, and in any 
event she floats better than she swims.” 


210 


IN THE RED CROSS 


Patsy regarded the little man curiously. 

“ Did you not tell us, when first we met you, 
that you were heart-broken over the separation 
from your wife and children ?” she inquired in 
severe tones. 

“ Yes, of course, mamselle; it was a good way 
to arouse your sympathy,” he admitted with an 
air of pride. “ I needed sympathy at that time, 
and my only fear was that you would find 
Clarette, as you threatened to do. Well,” with a 
deep sigh, “ you did find her. It was an 
unfriendly act, mamselle.” 

“ They told us in Ostend that the husband of 
Clarette is a condemned spy, one who served both 
sides and proved false to each. The husband of 
Clarette is doomed to suffer death at the hands 
of the Germans or the Belgians, if either is able 
to discover him.” 

Maurie removed his cap and scratched the hair 
over his left ear reflectively. 

“ Ah, yes, the blacksmith ! ” said he. “ I sus- 
pected that blacksmith fellow was not reliable.” 

“ How many husbands has Clarette ? ” 

“With the blacksmith, there are two of us/* 


21 1 


AUNT JANE'S NTECES 

answered Maurie, brightly. * Doubtless there 
would be more if anything happened to me, for 
Clarette is very fascinating. When she divorced 
the blacksmith he was disconsolate, and threat- 
ened vengeance; so her life is quite occupied in 
avoiding her first husband and keeping track of 
her second, who is too kind-hearted to threaten 
her as the blacksmith did. I really admire 
Clarette — at a distance. She is positively charm- 
ing when her mind is free from worry — and the 
children are asleep." 

“ Then you think," said Ajo, who was stand- 
ing by and listening to Maurie’s labored explana- 
tions, “ that it is the blacksmith who is condemned 
as a spy, and not yourself ? " 

“ I am quite sure of it. Am I not here, driving 
your ambulance and going boldly among the 
officers? If it is Jakob Maurie they wish, he is 
at hand to be arrested." 

** But you are not Jakob Maurie." 

The Belgian gave a start, but instantly recover- 
ing he answered with a smile: 

“ Then I must have mistaken my identity, 
monsieur. Perhaps you will tell me who Tam? " 


212 


IN THE RED CROSS 

“ Your wife called you ‘ Henri/ ” said Patsy* 

“Ah, yes; a pet name. I believe the black- 
smith is named Henri, and poor Qarette is so 
accustomed to it that she calls me Henri when 
she wishes to be affectionate/' 

Patsy realized the folly of arguing with him. 

“ Maurie,” said she, “ or whatever your name 
may be, you have been faithful in your duty to 
us and we have no icause for complaint. But I 
believe you do not speak the truth, and that you 
are shifty and artful. I fear you will come to a 
bad end.” 

“ Sometimes, mamselle,” he replied, “ I fear 
so myself. But, peste ! why should we care? If 
it is the end, what matter whether it is good or 
bad?” 

Watching their faces closely, he saw frank dis- 
approval of his sentiments written thereon. It 
disturbed him somewhat that they did not choose 
to continue the conversation, so he said meekly: 

“ With your kind permission, I will now go 
below for a cup of coffee,” and left them with a 
bow and a flourish of his cap. When he had gone 
Patsy said to Ajo: 


213 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ I don’t believe there is any such person as the 
blacksmith.” 

“ Nor I,” was the boy’s reply. “ Both those 
children are living images of Maurie, who claims 
the blacksmith was their father. He’s a crafty 
little fellow, that chauffeur of ours, and we must 
look out for him.” 

“If he is really a spy,” continued the girl, 
after a brief period of thought, “ I am amazed 
that he dared join our party and go directly to 
the front, where he is at any time likely to be 
recognized.” 

“ Yes, that is certainly puzzling,” returned Ajo. 
“ And he’s a brave little man, too, fearless of 
danger and reckless in exposing himself to shot 
and shell. Indeed, our Maurie is something of 
a mystery and the only thing I fully understand 
is his objection to Clarette’s society.” 

At “ le revue matin,” as the girls called the 
first inspection of the morning, eight of their 
patients were found sufficiently recovered to be 
discharged. Some of these returned to their regi- 
ments and others were sent to their homes to 
await complete recovery. The hospital ship 
214 


IN THE RED CROSS 


could accommodate ten more patients, so it was 
decided to make a trip to Dixmude, where an 
artillery engagement was raging, with the larger 
ambulance. 

“ I think I shall go to-day,” announced Gys, 
who was wearing his mask. “ Dr. Kelsey can 
look after the patients and it will do me good to 
get off the ship.” 

Uncle John looked at the doctor seriously. 

“ There is hard fighting, they say, in the 
Dixmude district. The Germans carried the 
British trenches yesterday, and to-day the Allies 
will try to retake them.” 

“ I don’t mind,” returned the doctor, but he 
shuddered, nevertheless. 

“ Why don’t you avoid the — the danger 
line ? ” suggested Mr. Merrick. 

“ A man can’t run away from himself, sir; 
and perhaps you can understand the fascination 
I find in taunting the. craven spirit within me.” 

“ No, I can’t understand it. But suit yourself.” 

“ I shall drive,” announced Maurie. 

“ You may be recognized,” said Patsy 
warningly. 


215 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ Clarette will not be at the front, and on the 
way I shall be driving. Have you noticed how 
people scatter at the sound of our gong? ” 

“ The authorities are watching for spies,” 
asserted Ajo. 

Maurie’s face became solemn. 

“ Yes; of course. But — the blacksmith is not 
here, and,” he added with assurance, “ the badge 
of the Red Cross protects us from false 
accusations.” 

When they had gone Uncle John said thought- 
fully to the girls: 

“ That remark about the Red Cross impressed 
me. If that fellow Maurie is really in danger of 
being arrested and shot, he has cleverly placed 
himself in the safest service in the world. He 
knows that none of our party is liable to be 
suspected of evil.” 


216 


CHAPTER XVIII 


A QUESTION OF LOYALTY 

During the morning they were visited by a 
French official who came aboard in a government 
boat and asked to see Mr. Merrick. 

The ship had been inspected several times by 
the commander of the port and the civil authori- 
ties, and its fame as a model hospital had spread 
over all Flanders. Some attempt had been made 
to place with the Americans the most important 
of the wounded — officers of high rank or those 
of social prominence and wealth — but Mr. 
Merrick and his aids were determined to show 
no partiality. They received the lowly and 
humble as well as the high and mighty and the 
only requisite for admission was an injury that 
demanded the care of good nurses and the skill 
of competent surgeons. 

Uncle John knew the French general and 
greeted him warmly, for he appreciated his gen- 
217 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

erous co-operation. But Beth had to be called 
in to interpret because her uncle knew so little 
of the native language. 

First they paid a visit to the hospital section, 
where the patients were inspected. Then the 
register and records were carefully gone over 
and notes taken by the general’s secretary. 
Finally they returned to the after-deck to review 
the convalescents who were lounging there in 
their cushioned deck-chairs. 

“ Where is the German, Lieutenant Elbl ? ” 
inquired the general, looking around with sudden 
suspicion. 

“ In the captain’s room,” replied Beth. 
“ Would you like to see him? ” 

“ If you please.” 

The group moved forward to the room occu- 
pied by Captain Carg. The door and windows 
stood open and reclining upon a couch inside was 
the maimed German, with Carg sitting beside 
him. Both were solemnly smoking their pipes. 

The captain rose as the general entered, while 
Elbl gave his visitor a military salute. 

“So you are better?” asked the Frenchman. 

218 


IN THE RED CROSS 


Beth repeated this in English to Carg, who 
repeated it in German to Elbl. Yes, the wounded 
man was doing very well. 

“ Will you keep him here much longer ? ” was 
the next question, directed to Mr. Merrick. 

“ I think so,” was the reply. “ He is still quite 
weak, although the wound is healing nicely. 
Being a military prisoner, there is no other place 
open to him where the man can be as comfortable 
as here.” 

“ You will be responsible for his person? You 
will guarantee that he will not escape ? ” 

Mr. Merrick hesitated. 

“ Must we promise that ? ” he inquired. 

“ Otherwise I shall be obliged to remove him 
to a government hospital.” 

“ I don’t like that. Not that your hospitals 
are not good enough for a prisoner, but Elbl 
happens to be a cousin of our captain, which puts 
a different face on the matter. What do you 
say, Captain Carg? Shall we guarantee that 
your cousin will not try to escape ? ” 

“ Why should he, sir? He can never rejoin 
the army, that’s certain,” replied Carg. 

219 


AUNT JANE'S NIECES 

“ True,” said the general, when this was con- 
veyed to him by Beth. “ Nevertheless, he is a 
prisoner of war, and must not be allowed to 
escape to his own people.” 

Beth answered the Frenchman herself, looking 
him straight in the face. 

“ That strikes me as unfair, sir,” said she. 
“ The German must henceforth be a noncom- 
batant. He has been unable, since he was 
wounded and brought here, to learn any of your 
military secrets and at the best he will be a help- 
less invalid for weeks to come. Therefore, 
instead of making him a prisoner, it would be 
more humane to permit him to return to his 
home and family in Germany.” 

The general smiled indulgently. 

“ It might be more humane, mademoiselle, but 
unfortunately it is against the military code. Did 
I understand that your captain will guarantee the 
German’s safety?” 

“Of course,” said Carg. “If he escapes, I 
will surrender myself in his place.” 

“ Ah ; but we moderns cannot accept Pythias 
if Damon runs away,” laughed the general. 


220 


IN THE RED CROSS 

6i But, there ; it will be simpler to send a parole 
for him to sign, when he may be left 
in your charge until he is sufficiently recovered 
to bear the confinement of a prison. Is that 
satisfactory? ” 

“ Certainly, sir replied the captain. 

Elbl had remained silent during this conversa- 
tion, appearing not to understand the French and 
English spoken. Indeed, since his arrival he had 
only spoken the German language, and that 
mostly in his intercourse with Carg. But after 
the French officer had gone away Beth began to 
reflect upon this reticence. 

“ Isn’t it queer,” she remarked to Uncle John, 
“ that an educated German — one who has been 
through college, as Captain Carg says Elbl has — 
should be unable to understand either French or 
English? I have always been told the German 
colleges are very thorough and you know that 
while at Ostend we found nearly all the German 
officers spoke good English.” 

“ It is rather strange, come to think of it,” 
answered Uncje John. “ I believe the study of 
languages is a part of the German military edu- 


221 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

cation. But I regret that the French are deter- 
mined to keep the poor fellow a prisoner. Such 
a precaution is absurd, to my mind.” 

“ I think I can understand the French posi- 
tion,” said the girl, reflectively. “ These Germans 
are very obstinate, and much as I admire Lieu- 
tenant Elbl I feel sure that were he able he would 
fight the French again to-morrow. After his 
recovery he might even get one of those mechan- 
ical feet and be back on the firing line.” 

“ He’s a Uhlan.” 

“ Then he could ride a horse. I believe, Uncle, 
the French are justified in retaining him as a 
prisoner until the war is over.” 

Meantime, in the captain’s room the two 
men were quietly conversing. 

“ He wants you to sign a parole,” said Carg. 

“ Not I.” 

“ You may as well. I’m responsible for your 
safety.” 

“ I deny anyone’s right to be responsible for 
me. If you have made a promise to that effect, 
withdraw it,” said the German. 

“ If I do, they’ll put you in prison.” 


222 


IN THE RED CROSS 


" Not at present I am still an invalid. In 
reality. I am weak and suffering. Yet I am 
already planning my escape, and that is why I 
insist that you withdraw any promise you have 
made. Otherwise — ” 

“ Otherwise ? ’* 

“ Instead of escaping by water, as I had 
intended, to Ostend, I must go to the prison and 
escape from there. It will be more difficult. The 
water route is best.” 

“ Of course,” agreed the captain, smoking 
calmly. 

“ One of your launches would carry me to 
Ostend and return here between dark and 
daylight.” 

“ Easily enough,” said Carg. It was five min- 
utes before he resumed his speech. Then he 
said with quiet deliberation : “ Cousin, I am an 
American, and Americans are neutral in this 
war.” 

“ You are Sangoan.” 

“ My ship is chartered by Americans, which 
obliges the captain of the ship to be loyal to its 
masters. I will do nothing to conflict with the 
223 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

interests of the Americans, not even to favor my 
cousin.” 

“ Quite right,” said Elbl. 

“If you have any plan of escape in mind, do 
not tell me of it,” continued the captain. “ I 
shall order the launches guarded carefully. I 
shall do all in my power to prevent your getting 
away from this ship.” 

“ Thank you,” said the German. “ You have 
my respect, cousin. Pass the tobacco.” 


224 


CHAPTER XIX 


THE CAPTURE 

There was considerable excitement when the 
ambulance returned. Part of the roof had been 
torn away, the doors were gone, the interior 
wrecked and not a pane of glass remained in the 
aides; yet Ajo drove it to the dock, the motor 
working as smoothly as ever, and half a dozen 
wounded Were helped out and put into the launch 
to be taken aboard the hospital ship. 

When all were on deck, young Jones briefly 
explained what had happened. A shell had struck 
the ambulance, which had been left in the rear, 
but without injuring the motor in any way. For- 
tunately no one was near at the time. When they 
returned they cleared away the rubbish to make 
room for a few wounded men and then started 
back to the city. 

Doctor Gys, hatless and coatless, his hair awry 
and the mask making him look more hideous than 
225 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

ever, returned with the party and came creeping 
up the ship’s ladder in so nervous a condition that 
his trembling knees fairly knocked together. 

The group around Ajo watched him silently. 

“ What do you think that fool did ? ” asked 
the boy, as Gys slunk away to his room. 

“ Tell us,” pleaded Patsy, who wa9 one of 
the curious group surrounding him. 

“ We had gone near to where a machine gun 
was planted, to pick up a fallen soldier, when 
without warning the Germans charged the gun. 
Maurie and I made a run for life, but Gys stood 
stock still, facing the enemy. A man at the gun 
reeled and fell, just then, and with a hail of 
bullets flying around him the doctor coolly walked 
up and bent over him. The sight so amazed 
the Germans that they actually stopped fighting 
and waited for him. Perhaps it was the Red 
Cross on the doctor’s arm that influenced them, 
but imagine a body of soldiers in the heat of a 
charge suddenly stopping because of one man ! ” 

“Well, what happened?” asked Mr. Merrick. 

“ I couldn’t see very well, for a battery that 
supported the charge was shelling the retreating 
226 


IN THE RED CROSS 


Allies and just then our ambulance was hit. But 
Maurie says he watched the scene and that when 
Gys attempted to lift the wounded man up he 
suddenly turned weak as water. The Germans 
had captured the gun, by this time, and their 
officer himself hoisted the injured man upon the 
doctor’s shoulders and attended him to our ambu- 
lance. When I saw the fight was over I hastened 
to help Gys, who staggered so weakly that he 
would have dropped his man a dozen times on 
the way had not the Germans held him up. They 
were laughing, as if the whole thing was a joke, 
when crack! came a volley of bullets and with 
a great shout back rushed the French and Bel- 
gians in a counter-charge. I admit I ducked, 
crawling under the ambulance, and the Germans 
were so surprised that they beat a quick retreat. 

“ And now it was that Gys made a fool of 
himself. He tore off his cap and coat, which 
bore the Red Cross emblem, and leaped right 
between the two lines. Here were the Germans, 
firing as they retreated, and the Allies firing as 
they charged, and right in the center of the fray 
stood Gys. The man ought to have been shot 
227 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

to pieces, but nothing touched him until a French- 
man knocked him over because he was in the 
way of the rush. It was the most reckless, sui- 
cidal act I ever heard of ! ” 

Uncle John looked worried. He had never 
told any of them of Dr. Gys’ strange remark 
during their first interview, but he had not for- 
gotten it. “I’ll be happier when I can shake off 
this horrible envelope of disfigurement,” the doc- 
tor had declared, and in view of this the report 
of that day’s adventure gave the kind-hearted 
gentleman a severe shock. 

He walked the deck thoughtfully while the 
girls hurried below to look after the new patients 
who had been brought, not too comfortably, in 
the damaged ajnbulance. “ It was a bad fight,” 
A jo had reported, “ and the wounded were thick, 
but we could only bring a few of them. Before 
we left the field, however, an English ambulance 
and two French ones arrived, and that gave us 
an opportunity to get away. Indeed, I was so 
unnerved by the dangers we had miraculously 
escaped that I was glad to be out of it.” 

Uncle John tried hard to understand Doctor 
228 


IN THE RED CROSS 


Gy s, but the man’s strange, abnormal nature was 
incomprehensible. When, half an hour later, Mr. 
Merrick went below, he found the doctor in the 
operating room, cool and steady of nerve and 
dressing wounds in his best professional manner. 

Upon examination the next morning the large 
ambulance was found to be so badly damaged 
that it had to be taken to a repair shop in the 
city to undergo reconstruction. It would take 
several weeks to put it in shape, declared the 
French mechanics, so the Americans would be 
forced to get along with the smaller vehicle. 
Jones and Dr. Kelsey made regular trips with 
this, but the fighting had suddenly lulled and for 
several days no new patients were brought to 
the ship, although many were given first aid in 
the trenches for slight wounds. 

So the colony aboard the Arabella grew grad- 
ually less, until on the twenty-sixth of November 
the girls found they had but two patients to 
care for — Elbl and Andrew Denton. Neither 
required much nursing, and Denton’s young wife 
insisted on taking full charge of him. But while 
the hospital ship was not in demand at this time 
229 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

there were casualties day by day in the trenches, 
where the armies faced each other doggedly and 
watchfully and shots were frequently inter- 
changed when a soldier carelessly exposed his 
person to the enemy. So the girls took turns 
going with the ambulance, and Uncle John made 
no protest because so little danger attended these 
journeys. 

Each day, while one of the American girls 
rode to the front, the other two would visit the 
city hospitals and render whatever assistance they 
could to the regular nurses. Gys sometimes 
accompanied them and sometimes went to the 
front with the ambulance; but he never caused 
his friends anxiety on these trips, because he 
could not endanger his life, owing to the cessa- 
tion of fighting. 

The only incident that enlivened this period of 
stagnation was the capture of Maurie. No; the 
authorities didn’t get him, but Clarette did. Ajo 
and Patsy had gone into the city one afternoon 
and on their return to the docks, where their 
launch was moored, they found a street urchin 
awaiting them with a soiled scrap of paper 
230 


IN THE RED CROSS 

clenched fast in his fist. He surrendered it for a 
coin and Patsy found the following words 
scrawled in English : 

“ She has me fast. Help ! Be quick. I cannot 
save myself so you must save me. It is your 
Maurie who is in distress.” 

They laughed a little at first and then began 
to realize that the loss of their chauffeur would 
prove a hardship when fighting was resumed. 
Maurie might not be a good husband, and he 
might be afraid of a woman, but was valuable 
when bullets were flying. Patsy asked the boy: 

“ Can you lead us to the man who gave you 
this paper?” 

“ Oui, mamselle.” 

“ Then hurry, and you shall have five centimes 
more.” 

The injunction was unnecessary, for the 
urchin made them hasten to keep up with him. 
He made many turns and twists through narrow 
alleys and back streets until finally he brought 
them to a row of cheap, plastered huts built 
against the old city wall. There was no mis- 
taking the place, for in the doorway of one of 
231 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

the poorest dwellings stood Clarette, her ample 
figure fairly filling the opening, her hands planted 
firmly on her broad hips. 

“ Good evening,” said Patsy pleasantly. “ Is 
Maurie within ? ” 

“ Henri is within,” answered Clarette with a 
fierce scowl, “ and he is going to stay within.” 

“ But we have need of his services,” said Ajo 
sternly, “ and the man is in our employ and under 
contract to obey us.” 

“ I also need his services,” retorted Clarette, 
“ and I made a contract with him before you 
did, as my marriage papers will prove.” 

The little boy and girl had now crowded into 
the doorway on either side of their mother, cling- 
ing to her skirts while they “ made faces ” at the 
Americans. Clarette turned to drive the children 
away and in the act allowed Patsy and Ajo to 
glance past her into the hut. 

There stood little Maurie, sleeves rolled above 
his elbows, bending over a battered dishpan where 
he was washing a mess of cracked and broken 
pottery. He met their gaze with a despairing 
countenance and a gesture of appeal that scat- 
232 


IN THE RED CROSS 


tered a spray of suds from his wet fingers. Next 
moment Clarette had filled the doorway again. 

“ You may as well go away/’ said the woman 
harshly. 

Patsy stood irresolute. 

“ Have you money to pay the rent and to pro- 
vide food and clothing?” she presently asked. 

“ I have found a few francs in Henri’s 
pockets,” was the surly reply. 

“ And when they are gone ? ” 

Clarette gave a shrug. 

“ When they are gone we shall not starve,” 
she said. “ There is plenty of charity for the 
Belgians these days. One has but to ask, and 
someone gives.” 

“ Then you will not let us have Maurie? ” 

“ No, mademoiselle.” Then she unbent a little 
and added: ‘‘If my husband goes to you, they 
will be sure to catch him some day, and when 
they catch him they will shoot him.” 

“ Why?” 

“Don’t you know?” 

“ No.” 

Clarette smiled grimly. 

233 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“ When Henri escapes me, he always gets him- 
self into trouble. He is not so very bad, but he 
is careless — and foolish. He tries to help the 
Germans and the French at the same time, to be 
accommodating, and so both have conceived a 
desire to shoot him. Well ; when they shoot him 
he can no longer earn money to support me and 
his children.” 

“ Are they really his children? ” inquired young 
Jones. 

“Who else may claim them, monsieur?” 

“ I thought they were the children of your 
first husband, the blacksmith.” 

Clarette glared at him, with lowering brow. 

“ Blacksmith ? Pah ! I have no husband but 
Henri, and heaven forsook me when I married 
him.” 

“ Come, Patsy,” said A jo to his companion, 
“ our errand here is hopeless. And — perhaps 
Clarette is right.” 

They made their way back to the launch in 
silence. Patsy was quite disappointed in Maurie. 
He had so many admirable qualities that' it was 
a shame he could be so untruthful and unreliable. 
234 


IN THE RED CROSS 


As time passed on the monotony that followed 
their first exciting experiences grew upon them 
and became oppressive. December weather in 
Flanders brought cutting winds from off the 
North Sea and often there were flurries of snow 
in the air. They had steam heat inside the ship 
but the deck was no longer a practical lounging 
place. 

Toward the last of the month Lieutenant Elbl 
was so fully recovered that he was able to hobble 
about on crutches. The friendship between the 
two cousins continued and Elbl was often found 
in the captain’s room. No more had been said 
about a parole, but the French officials were evi- 
dently keeping an eye on the German, for one 
morning an order came to Mr. Merrick to deliver 
Elbl to the warden of the military prison at Dun- 
kirk on or before ten o’clock the following day. 

While the German received this notification 
with his accustomed stolid air of indifference, his 
American friends were all grieved at his transfer. 
They knew the prison would be very uncomfort- 
able for the invalid and feared he was not yet 
sufficiently recovered to be able to bear the new 
235 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

conditions imposed tipon him. There was no 
thought of protesting the order, however, for 
they appreciated the fact that the commandant 
had been especially lenient in leaving the prisoner 
so long in their care. 

The Americans were all sitting together in the 
cabin that evening after dinner, when to their 
astonishment little Maurie came aboard in a skiff, 
bearing an order from the French commandant 
to Captain Carg, requesting him to appear at 
once at military headquarters. 

Not only was Carg puzzled by this strange 
summons but none of the others could under- 
stand it The Belgian, when questioned, merely 
shook his head. He was not the general’s con- 
fidant, but his fee as messenger would enable him 
to buy bread for his family and he had been 
chosen because he knew the way to the hospital 
ship. 

As there was nothing to do but obey, the cap- 
tain went ashore in one of the launches, which 
towed the skiff in which Maurie had come. 

When he had gone, Lieutenant Elbl, who had 
been sitting in the cabin, bade the others good 
236 


IN THE RED CROSS 


night and retired to his room. Most of the 
others retired early, but Patsy, Uncle John and 
Doctor Gys decided to sit up and await the 
return of the captain. It was an exceptionally cool 
evening and the warmth of the forward cabin 
was very agreeable. 

Midnight had arrived when the captain’s 
launch finally drew up to the side and Carg came 
hastening into the cabin. His agitated manner 
was so uipasual that the three watchers with one 
accord sprang to their feet with inquiring looks. 

“ Where’s Elbl ? ” asked the captain sharply. 

“ Gone to bed,” said Uncle John. 

“ When?” 

“ Hours ago. I think he missed your society 
and was rather broken up over the necessity of 
leaving us to-morrow.” 

Without hesitation Carg turned on his heel 
and hastened aft. They followed him in a won- 
dering group. Reaching the German’s stateroom 
the captain threw open the door and found it 
vacant 

“ Humph ! ” he exclaimed. “ I suspected the 
truth when I found our launch was gone.” 

237 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

“Which launch?” asked Uncle John, 
bewildered. 

“ The one I left with the ship. On my return, 
just now, I discovered it was not at its moorings. 
Someone has stolen it.” 

They stared at him in amazement. 

“Wasn’t the deck patrolled?” asked Patsy, 
the first to recover. 

“ We don’t set a watch till ten-thirty. It 
wasn’t considered necessary. But I had no sus- 
picion of the trick Elbl has played on me 
to-night,” he added with a groan. Their voices 
had aroused others. Ajo came out of his room, 
enveloped in a heavy bathrobe, and soon after 
Maud and Beth joined them. 

“ What’s up ? ” demanded the boy. 

“ The German has tricked us and made his 
escape,” quietly answered Dr. Gys. “ For my 
part, I’m glad of it.” 

“ It was a conspiracy,” growled the captain. 
“ That rascal, Maurie — ” 

“ Oh, was Maurie in it? ” 

“Of course. He was the decoy; perhaps he 
arranged the whole thing.” 

238 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ Didn’t the general want you, then ? ” 

Carg was so enraged that he fairly snorted. 

“Want me? Of course he didn’t want me! 
That treacherous little Belgian led me into the 
waiting room and said the general would see me 
in a minute. Then he walked away and I sat 
there like a bump on a log and waited. Finally 
I began to wonder how Maurie, who was always 
shy of facing the authorities, had happened to 
be the general’s messenger. It looked queer. 
Officers and civilians were passing back and 
forth but no one paid any attention to me; so 
after an hour or so I asked an officer who entered 
from an inner room, when I could see the gen- 
eral. He said the general \vas not there evenings 
but would be in his office to-morrow morning. 
Then I showed him my order and he glanced at 
it and said it was forged; wasn’t the general’s 
signature and wasn’t in proper form, anyhow. 
When I started to go he wouldn’t let me ; said the 
affair was suspicious and needed investigation. 
So he took me to a room full of officers and they 
asked me a thousand fool questions. Said they 
had no record of a Belgian named Maurie and 
239 


AUNT JANE’S NIEUES 

had never heard of him before. I couldn’t figure 
the thing out, and they couldn’t; so finally they 
let me come back to the ship.” 

“Strange,” mused Uncle John; “very 
strange ! ” 

“ I was so stupid,” continued Carg, “ that I 
never thought of Elbl being at the bottom of the 
affair until I got back and found our launch 
missing. Then I remembered that Elbl was to 
have been turned over to the prison authorities 
to-morrow and like a flash I saw through the 
whole thing.” 

“ I’m blamed if / do,” declared Mr. Merrick. 

The others likewise shook their heads. 

“He got me out of the way, stole the launch, 
and is half way to Ostend by this time.” 

“ Alone ? And wounded — still an invalid ? ” 

“ Doubtless Maurie is with him. The rascal 
can run an automobile; so I suppose he can run 
a launch.” 

“ What puzzles me,” remarked Patsy, “ is how 
Lieutenant Elbl ever got hold of Maurie, and 
induced him to assist him, without our knowing 
anything about it.” 


240 


IN THE RED CROSS 

“ I used to notice them talking together a good 
bit,” said Jones. 

“ But Clarette has kept Maurie a prisoner. 
She wouldn’t let him come back to the ship.” 

“ He was certainly at liberty to-night,” 
answered Beth. “ Isn’t this escape liable to be 
rather embarrassing to us, Uncle John? ” 

“ I’m afraid so,” was the reply. “ We agreed 
to keep him safely until the authorities demanded 
we give him up; and now, at the last minute, 
we’ve allowed him to get away.” 

Anxiety was written on every countenance as 
they considered the serious nature of this affair. 
Only Gys seemed composed and unworried. 

“ Is it too late to go in chase of the launch ? ” 
asked A jo, breaking a long pause. “ They’re 
headed for Ostend, without a doubt, and there’s 
a chance that they may run into a sand-bank in 
the dark, or break down, or meet with some other 
accident to delay them.” 

“ I believe it’s worth our while, sir,” answered 
Carg. “ The launch we have is the faster, and 
the trip will show our good faith, if nothing 
more.” 

241 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

" Then make ready to start at once,” said A jo, 
“ and I’ll dress and go along.” 

Carg hurried away to give orders and the 
boy ran to his stateroom. Five minutes later 
they were away, with four sailors to assist in 
the capture of the fugitives in case they were 
overtaken. 

It was a fruitless journey, however. At day- 
break, as they neared Ostend, they met their 
stolen launch coming back, in charge of a sleepy 
Belgian who had been hired to return it. The 
man frankly stated that he had undertaken the 
task in order to get to Dunkirk, where he had 
friends, and he had been liberally paid by a Ger- 
man on crutches, who had one foot missing, and 
a little Belgian whom he had never seen before, 
but who, from the description given, could be 
none other than Maurie. 

They carried the man back with them to the 
'Arabella, where further questioning added noth- 
ing to their information. They now had proof, 
however, that Elbl was safe with his countrymen 
at Ostend and that Maurie had been his 
accomplice. 


242 


IN THE RED CROSS 


“ I would not believe,” said Patsy, when she 
heard the story, “ that a Belgian could be so dis- 
loyal to his country.” 

“ Every nation has its quota of black sheep,” 
replied Uncle John, “ and from what we have 
learned of Maurie’s character he is not at all 
particular which side he serves.” 


243 


\ 


CHAPTER XX 


THE DUNES 

The escape of a prisoner of war from the 
American hospital ship was made the subject of 
a rigid inquiry by the officials and proved 
extremely humiliating to all on board the Ara- 
bella. The commandant showed his irritation 
by severely reprimanding Mr. Merrick for care- 
lessness, while Captain Carg had to endure a per- 
sonal examination before a board of inquiry. He 
was able to prove that he had been at head- 
quarters during the evening of the escape, but 
that did not wholly satisfy his inquisitors. Fin- 
ally an order was issued forbidding the Amer- 
icans to take any more wounded Germans or 
Austrians aboard their ship, and that seemed to 
end the unpleasant affair. 

However, a certain friction was engendered 
that was later evidenced on both sides. The Amer- 
ican ambulance was no longer favored on its 
244 


IN THE RED CROSS 


trips to the front, pointed preference being 
given the English and French Red Cross Emer- 
gency Corps. This resulted in few wounded 
being taken to the Arabella , as the Americans 
confined their work largely to assisting the 
injured on the field of battle. The girls were 
not to be daunted in their determined efforts to 
aid the unfortunate and every day one of them 
visited the trenches to assist the two doctors in 
rendering first aid to the wounded. 

The work was no longer arduous, for often 
entire days would pass without a single casualty 
demanding their attention. The cold weather 
resulted in much sickness among the soldiers, 
however, and Gys found during this period of 
military inactivity that his medicine chest was 
more in demand than his case of surgical 
instruments. 

A slight diversion was created by Clarette, who 
came to the ship to demand her husband from 
the Americans. It seemed almost impossible to 
convince her that Maurie was not hidden some- 
where aboard, but at last they made the woman 
understand he had escaped with the German to 
245 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

Ostend. They learned from her that Maurie — 
or Henri, as she insisted he was named — had 
several times escaped from her house at night, 
while she was asleep, and returned at daybreak 
in the morning, and this information led them to 
suspect he had managed to have several secret 
conferences with Lieutenant Elbl previous to 
their flight. Clarette announced her determina- 
tion to follow her husband to Ostend, and per- 
haps she did so, as they did not see her again. 

It was on Sunday, the twentieth of December, 
that the Battle of the Dunes began and the 
flames of war burst out afresh. The dunes lay 
between the North Sea and the Yser River in 
West Flanders and consisted of a stretch of 
sandy hillocks reaching from Coxyde to Nieuport 
les Bains. The Belgians had entrenched these 
dunes in an elaborate and clever manner, shovel- 
ing the sand into a series of high lateral ridges, 
with alternate hollows, which reached for miles 
along the coast. The hollows were from six to 
eight feet deep, affording protection to the sol- 
diers, who could nevertheless fire upon the enemy 
by creeping up the sloping embankments until 
246 


IN THE RED CROSS 


their heads projected sufficiently to allow them to 
aim, when they could drop back to safety. 

In order to connect the hollows one with 
another, that an advance or retreat might be made 
under cover, narrow trenches had been cut at 
intervals diagonally through the raised mounds 
of sand. Military experts considered this series 
of novel fortifications to be practically impreg- 
nable, for should the enemy defile through one 
of the cross passages into a hollow where the 
Allies were gathered, they could be picked off 
one by one, as they appeared, and be absolutely 
annihilated. 

Realizing this, the Germans had not risked an 
attack, but after long study of the defences had 
decided that by means of artillery they might 
shell the Belgians, who held the dunes, and 
destroy them as they lay in the hollows. So a 
heavy battery had been planted along the German 
lines for this work, while in defence the Belgians 
confronted them with their own famous dog 
artillery, consisting of the deadly machine guns. 
The battle of December twentieth therefore began 
with an artillery duel, resulting in so many 
247 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

casualties that the Red Cross workers found 
themselves fully occupied. 

Beth went with the ambulance the first day, 
worked in the hollows of the dunes, and returned 
to the ship at night completely worn out by the 
demands upon her services. It was Patsy’s turn 
next, and she took with her the second day one 
of the French girls as assistant. 

When the ambulance reached the edge of the 
dunes, where it was driven by A jo, the battle 
was raging with even more vigor than the previ- 
ous day. The Germans were dropping shells 
promiscuously into the various hollows, hoping 
to locate the hidden Belgian infantry, while the 
Belgian artillery strove to destroy the German 
gunners. Both succeeded at times, and both 
sides were equally persistent. 

As it was impossible to take the ambulance into 
the dunes, it was left in the rear in charge of 
Jones, while the others threaded their way in and 
out the devious passages toward the front. They 
had covered fully a mile in this laborious fashion 
before they came upon a detachment of Belgian 
infantry which was lying in wait for a call to 
248 


IN THE RED CROSS 


action. Beyond this trench the doctors and 
nurses were forbidden to go, and the officer in 
command warned the Americans to beware of 
stray shells. 

Under these circumstances they contented 
themselves by occupying some of the rear hol- 
lows, to which the wounded would retreat to 
secure their services. Dr. Kelsey and Nanette, 
the French girl, established themselves in one 
hollow at the right, while Dr. Gys and Patsy took 
their position in another hollow further to the 
left. There they opened their cases of lint, plaster 
and bandages, spreading them out upon the sand, 
and were soon engaged in administering aid to 
an occasional victim of the battle. 

One man who came to Patsy with a slight 
wound on his shoulder told her that a shell had 
exploded in a forward hollow and killed outright 
fifteen of his comrades. His own escape from 
death was miraculous and the poor fellow was so 
unnerved that he cried like a baby. 

They directed him to the rear, where he would 
find the ambulance, and awaited the appearance 
of more patients. Gys crawled up the mound of 
249 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

sand in front of them and cautiously raised his 
head above the ridge. Next instant he ducked to 
escape a rain of bullets that scattered the sand 
about them like a mist. 

“ That was foolish,” said Patsy reprovingly. 
“ You might have been killed.” 

“No such luck,” he muttered in reply, but the 
girl could see that he trembled slightly with 
nervousness. Neither realized at the time the 
fatal folly of the act, for they were unaware that 
the Germans were seeking just such a clew to 
direct them where to drop their shells. 

“ It’s getting rather lonely here, and there are 
a couple of vacant hollows in front of us,” 
remarked the doctor. “ Suppose we move over to 
one of those, a little nearer the soldiers? ” 

Patsy approved the proposition, so they gath- 
ered up their supplies and moved along the hollow 
to where a passage had been cut through. They 
had gone barely a hundred yards when a screech, 
like a buzz-saw when it strikes a nail, sounded 
overhead. Looking up they saw a black disk 
hurtling through the air, to drop almost where 
they had been standing a moment before. There 
250 


IN THE RED CROSS 

was a terrific explosion that sent debris to their 
very feet. 

“ After this we’ll be careful how we expose 
ourselves,” said the doctor gravely. “ They sure 
got our range in a hurry. Here comes another; 
we’d better get away quickly.” 

They progressed perhaps half a mile, without 
coming upon any soldiers, when at the brow of a 
hill slightly higher than the rest, they became 
aware of unwonted activity. A trench had been 
dug along the ridge, with great pits here and 
there to serve as bomb-proof shelters. Every 
time a head projected above the ridge, a storm 
of bullets showed that the enemy was well within 
rifle range. In fact, it was to dislodge the Ger- 
mans that the present intrenchments were being 
made; machine guns would be mounted as soon 
as positions had been prepared. 

The German bullets had already taken their 
toll. In the little valley a poor Belgian pressed 
his hand against a bad wound in his side, while 
another was nursing an arm roughly bandaged 
by his fellows in the trenches. First aid made 
the two comfortable for the time being at least 

251 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

and the men were directed toward the ambulance. 
As they left, the man with the wounded arm 
pointed down the narrow valley to where a deep 
ravine cut through. “We were driven from 
there,” he said. “ The big guns dropped shells 
on us and killed many; there are many wounded 
beyond — but you cannot cross the ravine. We 
lost ten in doing it.” 

Nevertheless, the doctor and Patsy strode off. 
Just within the shelter of the ridge they found 
another Belgian, desperately wounded, and the 
doctor stopped to ease his pain with the hypo- 
dermic needle. Patsy looked across the narrow 
defile; it was a bare fifty feet, and seemed safe 
enough. Her Red Cross uniform would pro- 
tect her, she reasoned, and boldly enough she 
stepped out into the open. A cry from a 
wounded soldier ahead hastened her footsteps. 
Without heeding the warning shout of Doctor 
Gys she calmly stooped over the man who had 
called to her. 

And then there was a sudden rending, blinding, 
terrifying crash that sent the world into a thou- 
sand shrieking echoes. A huge shell had fallen 
252 


IN THE RED CROSS 


not fifty feet away, plowing its way through the 
earthworks above. Its explosion sent timbers, 
abandoned gun-carriages, everything, flying 
through the air. And one great piece of wood 
caught Patsy a glancing blow on the back of her 
head as she crouched over the wounded Belgian. 
With a weak cry she toppled over, not uncon- 
scious, but unable to raise herself. 

Another shell crashed down a hundred yards 
away, and then one closer that sent the sand 
spouting high in a blinding cloud. She raised 
herself slowly and glanced back toward Doctor 
Gys. He stood, his face ashen with fear, hiding 
behind the shelter of the other hill. He looked 
up as she stirred; a cry of relief came to his lips. 

“ Wait l ” he called, bracing up suddenly. 
“ Wait and I will get you.” 

Bending his head low he sprang across the 
unprotected space. He stopped with a sudden 
jerk and then came on. 

“ You were hit ! ” cried Patsy as he bent over 
her. 

“ It is nothing,” he answered brusquely. 
“ Hold tight around my neck.” “ Now — ” 
253 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

another shell scattered sand over them — “ we 
must get away from here.” 

Breathing thickly, he staggered across the open, 
dropping her with a great groan behind the pro- 
tection of the ridge. 

“ The man you were helping,” he gasped. “ I 
must bring him in.” 

“ But you are wounded — ” Patsy cried. 

He straightened up — his hand clutched his 
side — there came across his disfigured features 
a queer twisted smile — he sighed softly and 
slowly sank in a crumpled heap. A clean little 
puncture in the breast of his coat told the whole 
story. Patsy felt herself slipping. . . A All 

grew dark. 

It was Ajo who found her and carried her 
back to the ambulance, where Dr. Kelsey and 
Nanette were presently able to restore her to con- 
sciousness. Then they returned to the Arabella, 
grave and silent, and Patsy was put to bed. 
Before morning Beth and Maud were anxiously 
nursing her, for she had developed a high fever 
and was delirious. 


254 


IN THE RED CROSS 


The days that succeed were anxious ones, for 
Patsy’s nerves had given away completely. It 
was many weeks later that the rest of them met 
on deck. 

“ It’s the first of February,” said Uncle John. 
“ Don’t you suppose Patsy could start for home 
pretty soon? ” 

“ Perhaps so,” answered Maud. “ She is 
sitting up to-day, and seems brighter and more 
like herself. Have we decided, then, to return 
to America ? ” 

“ I believe so,” was the reply. “ We can’t keep 
Ajo’s ship forever, you know, and without Doctor 
Gys we could never make it useful as a hospital 
ship again.” 

“ That is true,” said the girl, thoughtfully. 
“ Now that Andrew Denton, with his wife and 
the countess, have gone to Charleroi, our ship 
seems quite lonely.” 

“You see,” said A jo, taking part in the dis- 
cussion, “ we’ve never been able to overcome the 
suspicious coldness of these Frenchmen, caused 
by Elbl’s unfortunate escape. We are not 
trusted fully, and never will be again, so I’m con- 
255 


AUNT JANE’S NIECES 

vinced our career of usefulness here is ended.” 

“ Aside from that,” returned Uncle John, 
“ you three girls have endured a long period of 
hard work and nervous strain, and you need a 
rest. I’m awfully proud of you all; proud of 
your noble determination and courage as well as 
the ability you have demonstrated as nurses. You 
have unselfishly devoted your lives for three 
strenuous months to the injured soldiers of a for- 
eign war, and I hope you’re satisfied that you’ve 
done your full duty.” 

“ Well,” returned Maud with a smile, “ I 
wouldn’t think of retreating if I felt that our 
services were really needed, but there are so many 
women coming here for Red Cross work — Eng- 
lish, French, Swiss, Dutch and Italian — that 
they seem able to cover the field thoroughly.” 

“ True,” said Beth, joining the group. “ Let’s 
go home, Uncle. The voyage will put our Patsy 
in fine shape again. When can we start, Ajo? ” 

“ Ask Uncle John.” 

“ Ask Captain Carg.” 

“If you really mean it,” said the captain, “ I’ll 
hoist anchor to-morrow morning.” 

256 


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